Yours and Mine
by Spiritual Wolf
Summary: DISCONTINUED.  Rewind to before Minato was named Yondaime Hokage. Back to when he was younger, when he met HER. Uzumaki Kushina. From their first meeting, to their final moments. And all the wild things inbetween; realization, War, gains, losses.
1. Perfect World

**Yours and Mine**

**Prologue: Perfect World**

"Fight!! Fight for the honor of the village!! Fight to survive!!" Battle cries rang out, nearly drowned out by the crackling of the flames that started engulfing some of the nearby houses. Women and children screamed fearfully, for their lives and the lives of the ones they loved. The light drizzle wasn't enough to extinguish the fire, and the flames only created another problem the shinobi had to face.. Bodies were lying everywhere, both those of the villagers and those who protected the villagers. Weapons lay scattered everywhere on the ground as the drizzle slowly washed the blood off the metal and onto the already damp soil. The sound of weapons clashing also rang out throughout the rather small village.

"We can't hold him off!! Let the women and children escape!!"

_Huff... huff.. huff..._ A large figure burst through some of the flames, swiftly darting through the charred building, moving as best he could with the injury on his leg, but that didn't stop him from moving as fast as he could to escape this village and save the life of his sister. Almost as soon as he was about to set foot outside the boundaries of the village, he was struck in the back with a large fuuma shuriken, causing him to topple forward from being hit by the shuriken. No other weapons or jutsus came after him, the enemy thinking that the shuriken had been enough for the already injured nin.

He coughed violently, slowly squirming to get to his feet, limping into the foliage and out of the village's sight, where he lowered onto one knee, slowly placing the girl he was carrying down on the ground. In the light of the flames, she looked to be half-conscious, blood dripping down from the sides of her hitai-ate and out of the corners of her mouth. Red-brown hued eyes looked up at the man whom carried her, half clouded from unconsciousness.

"Nii-san... I..."

"It's okay..." The brother breathed, placing his other knee on the ground and pulling her into an embrace, coughing up some blood onto her shoulder before he pulled away without bothering to wipe the blood from his lips, raising his hands and looking down at the fingerless gloves that covered them. He silently pulled them off, taking his younger sister's hand and placing the gloves on her palm, gently pushing her fingers closed around them.

"Take them... I know how much you like them since okaa-san made them..." The shinobi forced a grin, even though he was suffering from pain from his injuries.. Even though she was half-conscious, her eyes widened a bit.

"Nii-san..! Don't..!"

"I'm sorry... But please, live on..." He staggered to his feet, coughing up more blood before he looked over at the flames that had begun to spread further. The girl groaned, forcing herself to her own feet as she took hold of her brother's flak vest.

"Nii-san, please... dont..." Her brother looked down at her, before he placed his palm on her bloodied temple, his hand glowing green for a few seconds. The blood slowly stopped dripping from her head, but she still felt light-headed from the bloodloss. He placed both hands on her shoulders, mostly to support himself from falling.

"Please live on..."

"Nii-san..! Please..."

"I've healed the wound in your head... You should be able to get away and hide in the forest for a while... Maybe even in the Hi no Kuni if you get far enough..." Her brother rasped, coughing a bit more, forcing him to stop talking. The coughing ceased, and he continued on the best he could. "Join another ninja village... This village is finished. This country is finished... The daimyo who runs the... country was slain yesterday... Then the enemy moved on to the village..."

He bent his knees at this, lowering down to her height, pulling her into a final embrace. "Live on... 'Shina... I love you." Her eyes widened at the last three words, before tears welled up in her eyes.

"No, nii-san..." She choked, but her brother already pulled out of the embrace, turning around and heading back in the direction of the village. Kushina tried to stumbled after him, but he turned around looked at her with a pleading look.

"Please, Kushina... Live on... Fight on, knowing that you are probably the last of the Uzu Kuni." He clenched his fist, before he ran back into the flame-lit village, his silhouette disappearing from sight. Kushina was sobbing by now, but she quickly turned around, running in the opposite direction of the village. Her fist clenched around her brother's goodbye gift, running until she couldn't see the orange hue the flames created. She kept running and running, before she could no more, finally she slowed down to a walk, continuing on through the dark night...

**  
Chapter I: Life**

"Hehehe... Chuunin, already, eh? C'mon, let's celebrate tonight; I'll buy the drinks, alright?" Jiraiya grinned, wrapping his arm around the blonde Chuunin's shoulders, his other hand roughly rubbing the blonde's spikey hair. Minato yelped a bit and squirmed to get out of the small, playful headlock, but he still grinned anyway.

"No.. Not yet."

"Eh? We're not gonna celebrate tonight? Then when?" Jiraiya questioned, looking down at his student, lowering the hand that was rubbing Minato's head. Minato kept grinning, raising one of his hands and pointing to himself with his thumb.

"When I become a Jounin_. Then_ we can celebrate, Jiraiya-sensei." Minato stated, causing Jiraiya to blink again. The white-haired Jounin smirked a bit, trying to stifle some snickers.

"Jounin? Geez..."

"What's that supposed to mean, sensei?" Minato questioned, his grin fading at his sensei's words. Jiraiya shook his head before Minato would start frowning rather than grinning.

"You just made Chuunin this morning and already you're shooting to become a Jounin. You just don't stop, do you?"

"Of course not! Just watch, I'll be the strongest shinobi in this village!" Minato grinned once more, shrugging Jiraiya's arm off his shoulders and jogging ahead a few steps, before turning around and walking backwards so that he still faced his sensei. "So that means you have to keep training me, alright, sensei?"

Jiraiya scratched his head. "You might as well get trained by Hokage-sama instead of me."

"Th-that'd be rude of me, sensei..." Minato mumbled, shifting his blue gaze to the ground. "Being trained by Hokage-sama? Sensei's good enough since he was student of Hokage-sama..."

"I'm sure he wouldn't mind."

"But he has paper work, sensei... oi, you're just trying to weasel your way out of training me, aren't you?!" Minato growled, pointing rather boldly at the white-haired sannin. Jiraiya rose his hands up to chest level, sighing a bit.

"Alright, you caught me. Is tomorrow alright with you? And lower your finger, we're in public." Jiraiya ordered, which Minato did with a simple nod.

"Tomorrow, then. I guess I'll have to find something to do today."

"What, you're not going to train yourself?" Jiraiya questioned with some surprise mixed in his tone. Minato shrugged. "We're going to be training tomorrow, so I might as well rest up today."

"That's not like you, but it's your choice, Minato." The sensei of the two shrugged. Minato shrugged once more in response, before slipping his hands into his pockets and turning around to face the direction he was walking in. He wasn't paying much attention when he turned, so he nearly walked right into someone. But Minato spun around this person, narrowly avoiding physical contact.

"Whoa.. Sorry."

"Oh. Uh. It's alright. I guess. Whatever..." The girl mumbled, scratching her red-hair which was tied up into a small, high ponytail. Minato blinked as he examined her, noting a hitai-ate other than Konoha's adorning her neck. It was probably foreign or from a smaller country, since the symbol was swirled- much like Konoha's -but with a few more added lines surrounding the swirled circle.

"You're not from here... Are you lost, perhaps?" Minato questioned. The red-head rose a brow and folded her arms.

"Thanks, Captain Obvious. And of course I'm lost. This place is freakin' huge. I don't get how you people can't get lost in a village this size." She muttered, red-brown hued eyes looking over to her left, where Jiraiya's footsteps came as he approached the two of them. Jiraiya blinked, looking down at the kunoichi with his hands casually in his pockets.

"Oh? A foreign kunoichi, have we? Where're your parents? Or your team?" Jiraiya questioned, black eyes shifted from her to around the streets, unable to find anyone who seemed to be missing a kunoichi.

"I don't have any of both... That's why I'm here, 'tebayo."

Jiraiya returned his gaze back down to the kunoichi. "What do you mean? ..." He squatted down so he was below eye level with the two younger shinobis, tilting his head upwards to meet her gaze. He glimpsed at her hitai-ate for a moment, then returned his sight to her eyes once more. "Uzu no Kuni, am I correct?"

"Yea. Got it right, old man."

"Just because I have white hair doesn't label me as old, does it?" Jiraiya growled, looking rather annoyed at this. The kunoichi only frowned back, sharpening her eyes into daggers and glaring back at him. Minato laughed nervously, pushing his way between the two and breaking their small glaring contest.

"Haha... Now, now.. Why are you here, miss... Uh.." Minato looked over at her confusedly. She just snorted, but she pointed to herself with her thumb.

"Uzumaki Kushina, dattebayo." She introduced with a slight smirk. "Kunoichi of the... former... Whirlpool Country..." Kushina trailed off, a look of sadness filling her red-hued eyes as she looked down and away from the two. Her shoulders stiffened a bit and she slid her right hand into the pocket of her dusty black pants, fingering at the contents of her pocket silently. "..."

"... It's just as I thought." Jiraiya sighed wearily, raising one of his hands to scratch his spikey white hair. "So the rumors were true; The Uzu Country _has_ fallen. How?"

"What business is it of yours?!" Kushina snapped, glaring at him. She threw out her lower lip a bit, pulling her hands out of her pockets and folding her arms across her chest. "I don't have to tell every damn person who comes along and asks me what happened to my village!"

"..." Minato just stared at her, allowing her to blow off some steam. Kushina's shoulders rose and fell in shallow pants for a few seconds before she bit her lower lip, clenching her fists as she pulled her folded arms down, keeping them balled into fists by her sides.

"... Just tell me where the Hokage's Tower is already..." She muttered. Jiraiya rolled his eyes a bit, but made sure it wasn't visible to her, and he got up.

"Well, it looks like you have something to do today, Minato." Jiraiya slipped his hands back into his pockets, turning to the blonde. "Why dont'cha take her over to the Hokage Tower? I'm sure if we just give her directions she'll probably get lost..." He added, backing up to avoid the kick that Kushina sent his way. She huffed a bit, but didn't say anything, obviously agreeing with the Gama Sannin. Minato blinked his blue eyes, before he smiled and nodded, tilting his head slightly to look down at Kushina.

"Alright, Sensei... Is that alright with you, Uzumaki-san?"

"... Whatever, 'tebayo..." Kushina muttered, avoiding his gaze. "... Call me Kushina, blondy."

_... "blondy"..._ Minato laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his head with embarassment. "Ah... Alright, Kushina-san... the Hokage Tower is over this way." He said, walking around Jiraiya and looking back at her. Kushina glanced over at Jiraiya, keeping her red-brown gaze on him for a bit before walking around him, snorting a bit as she walked after Minato. Jiraiya wearily looked over his shoulder, a brow risen. He shrugged a bit, beginning to walk in the opposite direction. _Tomboy._

"... Your sensei's got some issues, blondy." Kushina muttered, breaking the silence that hung in the air between the two. Minato looked sideways at her, before returning his gaze to the front, grinning a bit.

"He can be weird, but once you get to know him, he's really cool. ... Although, he can be..." Minato trailed off, causing Kushina to raise a brow as she looked at him. "... He can be what?"

"Uhh. Nevermind." Minato shook his head.

"Whatever you say, blondy."

"..." Minato laughed a little nervously again. "Etou... My name's not "blondy"..."

"Well maybe if you actually told me your name, I wouldn't have to call you blondy, blondy..!" Kushina retorted, obviously knowing that Minato would say something similiar to what he said previously.

"... Gomen." Minato rubbed the back of his his neck, before extending his other hand, halting in the middle of the street. "Namikaze Minato, desu."

Kushina blinked, halting beside him and gingerly taking his hand anyway, though she could probably care less. "Namikaze? You mean like those troublemakers? Doesn't suit you..." She muttered a bit, releasing his hand and lowering it down to her sides. Minato blinked.

"Oh... No... It could be written in alot of ways."

"... So you go by "ocean wind"? Whatever, 'tebayo." She shrugged. Minato stifled a shrug, beginning to walk again with Kushina at his side.

"... Why do you say "dattebayo" at the end of your sentences?" Minato couldn't help but question. Kushina looked him over. "Why is your hair so unnaturally blonde?" She just questioned back. Minato's eye twitched, but he decided to let it slide. After all, sensei left him to guide Kushina to the Hokage Tower.

Kushina snorted at his lack of response, glancing around a bit, taking in the sights while unconsciously weaving around the people in the streets and following Minato. The blonde kept glancing over at her to make sure he didn't lose her in the crowd, before tilting his gaze upwards slightly towards the red Hokage tower, before he entered the door and up the stairs, leading her inside.

"... Oi, is this the place, dattebayo?" Kushina questioned. Minato only nodded, continuing to lead her down a couple of hallways. He halted in front of one of the doors, using the back of his knuckles to knock on the door, moving his hand down to turn the doorknob and then entering.

"Hokage-sama...? There's a kunoichi from the Uzu no Kuni..." Minato explained as he pushed the door open wider, entering with Kushina following. The Sandaime Hokage was sitting in the back of the room behind a fairly large desk and and a few equally large-size stacks of papers and scrolls cluttered ontop it. Sarutobi looked up from one of the paperworks, before placing his writing tool back into a small vial of black ink.

"From the Uzu Kuni, you say...?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama." Minato nodded, closing the door shut behind Kushina, before standing by the door and folding his arms behind his back casually. Kushina cautiously walked toward the desk, stopping atleast a few paces in front of the Hokage, fidgeting rather nervously. Minato sighed inwardly, stepping forward to place his hand on Kushina's shoulder and pulled it upwards, straightening her back, and then using his foot to push Kushina's own feet together. Kushina didn't seem to notice that Minato helped her out, clearing her throat a bit and standing straight. Sarutobi looked rather amused as Minato backed away to the front of the room.

"... So then, miss. Tell me why you are here."

"H.. Hai, Hokage-sama." Kushina nodded. "Uhm..." She slouched a bit, her gaze trailing away. "... Well, sir.. My Country was recently destroyed..." She started, rubbing the back of her neck as she frowned sadly. "I couldn't see who the opposing shinobi were... Though they were probably from Iwa or Kumo... But anyways, Hokage-sama...! Please allow me to join the village!" Kushina turned to him, bowing rather low. "I think some of the surviving villagers have gone off to join other ninja villages, probably water-based ones like Kiri or Taki or Ame... But small villages like that might...!" She didn't finished, still bowed practically at a 90 degree angle. "Please, Hokage-sama!! I don't have a home since my family was and most of my friends are dead!"

"..." Sarutobi placed his arms on his desk, folding his hands together and looking at Kushina's bowed form. "What kind of Hokage would I be if I turned a homeless kunoichi away?"

Kushina tore her gaze away from the floor and raising her head slightly, not raising from her bow, to peer up at the Sandaime Hokage. "Then...?"

"Of course you may join, miss."

Kushina rose fully from her bow, red-brown eyes filled with joy. "Arigatou gozaimasu, Hokage-sama!" She bowed once more. Sarutobi smiled a bit.

"Of course you'd have to find an apartment of your own.. Tell me, what level ninja are you?"

"Uh.. Only genin, Hokage-sama..." Kushina mumbled. "I was going to be promoted to Chuunin a couple of weeks ago, but..." She trailed off, knowing that Sarutobi would get the rest. The Sandaime nodded. "Ah... Then I guess we should promote you as a Konoha Chuunin then."

"Really?"

"Unless you want to still be a genin..."

"Oh. Uh. No, sir..."

A slight silence filled the air as Kushina stopped mumbling. Sarutobi started shifting through some paperwork and the drawers on his desk. Kushina remained silent, allowing him to search for whatever he was looking for. Sarutobi finally straightened himself, pulling out a few slips of paper as he did, using his hand to motion for the red-haired kunoichi to step forward, which she did gingerly. Sarutobi turned the paper around so that it was right-side up for her, placing it on a cleared part of the desk in front of her.

"As a new ninja of Konohagakure, we'll need your information. Fill out as much as you can, unless you want to be called in often to fill in the gaps."

"Oh, no sir.." Kushina nodded, carefully taking a writing tool and filling it out, lowering onto her knees and writing her information down. Minato and Sarutobi exchanged subtle glances every now and then, though they were just acknowledgement that Minato was still in the room. Gingerly, Kushina stood up, eyes rolling over the paper as she scanned the slips of paper, making sure she got most of the information down.

"I.. think I got it all, dayo..."

Sarutobi nodded, reaching out and taking the paperwork, pulling it towards himself and reading the information.

"_Uzumaki_ Kushina...?"

"Hai."

"..." Sarutobi paused as he thought for a moment. _... So she's using her former country's name as her surname to remind herself?... _"Very well, Kushina. For about the first week or so, you won't be assigned any missions... And it should give you enough time to find an apartment for you to live in... Between all that, you should explore the village a bit, become familiar with it." Sarutobi spoke rather unconsciously while his eyes kept scanning the slips of paper.

"Err..." Kushina placed the writing tool back on the desk, getting to her feet and backing up a few steps, brushing some of the dust off her knees. "Well, Hokage-sama... The village itself is rather big..."

Sarutobi's eyes left the writing, looking over the paper and at the kunoichi. "... Well, I suppose it is, isn't it? If you've lived here your whole life you'd think it was rather small..." He chuckled a bit. "Then how about Minato show you around? He lead you here, did he not?"

Minato blinked. He barely caught what the Sandaime had said, since his thoughts had trailed off for a bit. But Kushina repeated what Sandaime said, so he wasn't completely lost.

"Blondy?" Kushina was looking back at him. "You alright with keeping me from getting lost?"

"Uh. Sure."

"Thank you, Minato." Sarutobi nodded. "Sorry for giving you a D-rank type mission on the day you become Chuunin..."

"Oi oi, don't make it sound like I'm a client, 'cuz I'm not paying, dattebayo..." Kushina forgot her place, frowning as she pointed to herself with her thumb, red-brown eyes calmly glaring at Minato. The newly appointed Chuunin blinked his blue eyes, before nodding slowly.

"Hai...?"

Sarutobi blinked at Kushina's sudden change in personality, but he smiled a bit. "Very well."

"Arigatou, Hokage-sama, dayo." Kushina bowed a bit, but she turned around with a wave, walking towards the door.

"Let's go, blondy. Showing me to the food stands would be nice, first of all..." Kushina muttered, placing her hand on the doorknob and turning it, pulling the door open and walking out. Minato sighed inwardly, but he bowed in respect to Sarutobi, leaving the room and closing the door behind him. Sarutobi snickered a bit.

""Blondy"..."

* * *

"Maa, blondy. Dango shops. There are some here, right?" Kushina questioned almost as soon as they set foot on the streets outside the Hokage Tower, the kunoichi's arms raising and folding behind her head as she followed Minato. Minato sighed a bit.

"Kushina-san, it's Minato..."

"Sorry, Minato-blondy." The Chuunin's eye twitched a bit, but he wouldn't let it slide this time.

"Just Minato would be nice, Kushina-san..."

"Aw, why not? Blondy suits you perfectly." Kushina took a couple of big steps to catch up, unfolding her arms from behind her head and taking a strand of Minato's hair. "Yellow. Blonde. Blondy. Or would you rather be called sunshine?" Kushina snickered, releasing his hair and lowering her arm back down to her side. "Sunshine fits you good, too. The way your hair is spiked..."

Minato sweatdropped, a few anime horror lines visible under one of his blue eyes. "Err... I'm fine with blondy.." He admitted with a sigh. Kushina smirked smugly.

"Alright. Where's the nearest dango shop, 'tebayo?" She questioned, raising her hand once more to poke him in the cheek just to irritate him. Minato just allowed her to poke him, waiting for the kunoichi to finish and then sighing. He nodded towards one direction, continuing towards where he pointed.

"There's a really nice one with good tea just around the block."

Kushina nodded, walking after him. "And where're the training grounds?"

"One thing at a time, Kushina-san..." Minato stifled a sigh, trying not to sound rude. "I'll show you all the important parts of the village, we have all day." He sort of forced a smile, looking back at her. The kunoichi blinked, but snorted, tossing her head a bit.

"Sorry, dayo..."

"No need to apologize..." The blonde shrugged. The rest of the walk was quiet except for the sound of other villagers speaking amongst themselves, as well as salesmen yelling to catch people's attention. Finally, Minato turned his head and tilted his head slightly to look down at Kushina, then looking over at the dango stand. Kushina followed his gaze, but grinned a bit.

"Finally... I haven't had a decent snack or meal in days..." She muttered, walking into the shop with Minato at her side. One of the waiters looked up when he heard the brush of the cloth hanging above the doorway sound, before smiling.

"Ah, Minato-kun, it's been a while." The waiter spoke with a smile. "You here for a quick take-out for training? ... Or on a date?"

"Cork it, happy-go-lucky." Kushina growled, though she could feel her face redden a bit. "And since you're here, happy-go-lucky, make it a take-out, will you, blondy?" She growled once more, this time directing it to Minato. The Chuunin sighed inwardly, but nodded at the waiter, a thin line of blush visible on his face from being ordered around and from the thought of the two of them being on a date. So early when they met eachother? No...

"We'll have a few dango sticks and some tea in bottles, if you have any..." Minato muttered a bit. The waiter only smirked, but nodded before turning around and walking into the backrooms to get the order. Kushina glared sideways at him, her lower lip thrown out a bit.

Minato could only guess what to say to try and get rid of the evil look on her face. "...I'm sorry..."

"Whatever..." Kushina muttered. She turned on her heels, beginning to walk outside. "I'll be waiting, I don't want to see the happy-go-lucky guy." Minato nodded wearily with a sigh, just standing in the shop while waiting for the waiter to return. He did a few moments later, handing the blonde Chuunin a couple of small plastic containers as well as two bamboo canteens. Minato easily took the food and beverages in one hand, his other hand beginning to dig through his pocket. The waiter stopped him.

"Oh, it's on the house, Minato-kun." He smiled. "You were made Chuunin today, right? It might not be much, but think of it as a congratulatory gift."

Blue eyes looked up at this, but Minato grinned and bowed. "Arigatou!"

The waiter only grinned. "You're welcome. No run along. Your date's waiting."

"Dammit, I can still hear you from here!!" Kushina growled into the shop. "He's only showing me around this village, dattebayo!"

Minato sighed at this, straightening himself and turning around to walk outside. "Hai, hai, Kushina-san. He gets the point..." He mumbled. Kushina only frowned at the waiter when he waved, before huffing and turning to walk down the streets.

"... The training grounds first..."

"Hai, hai."

* * *

"Whoa, geez! This is your guys' training grounds?!" Kushina immediately hopped onto the fence, which rattled when she perched ontop one of the poles with steady balance. She raised her hand to her forehead, shielding her eyes from the sun, squinting to see how far she could see. Minato just hopped over the fence without so much as having to use his hands, landing easily on the other side and looking up at her.

"No, it's only one of the many. There's a good-sized forest within the villages walls." He explained. Kushina stared down at him, before looking up at the training ground.

"Geez, this place is huge. Our village was just a speck compared to here..." She muttered, hopping down from the fence with a grunt. Minato only laughed nervously, turning to walk with Kushina trailing after him. A few moments later, Kushina could hear the sound of a stream flowing nearby. The kunoichi looked over at Minato.

"No way, you guys have streams in the training grounds?"

Minato smiled a bit, nodding. "Hai."

Kushina glanced at him a bit, then trailed off towards the direction of the where she could hear the currents. Minato watched her as he walked towards the three stumps. He looked over at the three, familiar wooden stumps for a moment, remembering the first time Jiraiya brought his genin team here. Shaking his head, he placed the food and canteens in the shade of the stumps before he jumped onto the stumps, settling down on one of them.

Kushina just kept walking over towards the stream and stepped onto its surface without so much as pausing, even for a brief moment. The kunoichi walked out to the middle of the stream, folding her arms behind her back as she enjoyed the presence of water beneath her feet. All was silent in the training grounds except for the sound of the wind breezing between the trees and the currents being interrupted by Kushina's feet. After a few moments, she turned around, stepping off the water's surface and walking over to the blonde Chuunin.

"I'm gonna eat. Hungry." She mumbled, lowering down and taking one of the plastic cases and canteens. She jumped onto one of the other stumps next to Minato, opening the cases and taking one of the dango sticks. Minato nodded at this, jumping down from the stump and taking his own food, standing up and just leaning against the stump. Kushina looked around as she ate her first dango in a while. She examined all of the trees, noting that a few of them had some horizontal cuts going up the bark. Kushina pointed to it, looking over at Minato.

"The tree-climbing exercise?" Kushina guessed, and Minato nodded. He swallowed oneo fhis dango so he could speak.

"Yeah, it's the most basic chakra-molding exercises. Same with the leaf on the forehead and the water-walking, which you pretty much got covered already."

"Well, yeah, why not?" The kunoichi rolled her eyes. "I lived in the Uzu Kuni... Whirlpool equals water, dattebayo."

Minato blinked at this, but smiled nervously. "Ha ha... I suppose you're right, Kushina-san..." Silence filled the air once more as they continued eating, the two occasionally taking sips of their tea to wash down the food. Kushina left one of her dango sticks in the case, closing it and deciding to save it for later. She patted her hands a bit and jumping down from the tree stump.

"Since I'm going to be living here, I might as well practice the tree-climbing exercise... right?" Kushina muttered, glancing back at him. Minato blinked, the dango stick in his mouth as he nodded. Kushina turned her head back towards the trees, approaching them. She titled her head to look at the other trees, before looking at the tree she stood in front of and pulled a kunai from her holster, which Minato noted was on her left thigh rather than her right. Minato shifted, keeping the finished dango stick in his mouth as he watched, supervising. Kushina just raised her hands in the seal of the ram to concentrate, ignoring Minato's gaze on her back. After a few moments, Kushina opened her eyes and ran up the tree.

Minato watched her, impressed that she was able to go more than half-way up the tree on her first go.

Kushina scowled as her foot slipped, swiftly swinging her arm to create a cut on the tree. Instinctively, she grabbed a branch of the tree, gasping inwardly when the branch snapped. "Shit!"

The Uzu nin blinked when she didn't feel the pain of her back coming in hard contact with the ground. Instead, she felt a pair of arms under her legs and back, bridal style, she thought.

"Kushina-san! Are you alright..?!" Minato asked worriedly, blue eyes also filled with worry as he looked down at her. Kushina paused for a moment, but frowned and pushed his chest, ordering him to put her down, which he did promptly. Kushina tried to shrug off the fact that he caught her by brushing her clothing, ridding it of dust as she turned her back to him to also try and hide the red that tinted her cheeks.

"I'm fine..." She muttered, withdrawing her kunai to her holster. Kushina turned around, being sure to avoid looking at him, and walked over to the stumps, taking her extra food and canteen.

"... I'm.. gonna go find a place with an available apartment." Kushina growled when she sensed that Minato was following her. Minato blinked at this, but nodded.

"Want me to help?"

"No, I'm fine."

"Ah, alright then..." Minato nodded once more. "See you around, then?"

"Uh. Yeah. Sure." Kushina muttered, raising her hand in a farewell wave without looking at him as she started to walk towards the exit of the training grounds. Minato just watched her for a moment, then cupped one of his hands to his mouth.

"Don't be afraid to come find me if you need any help!!" He called.

Kushina's gaze moved to the corner of her eyes, but she didn't turn her head. _... Stupid blondy...

* * *

_

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala:** Hullo there! If you're down here, then I assume you've finished reading the first chapter of my MinatoxKushina fic! That makes me happy that you've read it! ;-;

But anyways, I'm not sure how long this fanfiction will be, but I'd be happy if you stuck with it, atleast half-way!  
Of course, we don't know much about Kushina, much less, what she looks like... But the way Jiraiya and Tsunade were talking about her in chapter 367, she came to the village when she was young... And they said "former" whirlpool country, so.. Yeah. -nodnod-

**Major Edit, zomg: **Yey, the fic's being beta'd now by _Shinsei Kuro_. D: Arigatou, ne, danna?

* * *


	2. Remember The Name

**Chapter II: Remember the Name**

_The Uzu nin blinked when she didn't feel the pain of her back coming in to hard contact with the ground, instead, she felt a pair of arms under her legs and back, supporting her bridal style, she thought._

_"Kushina-san! Are you alright..?!" Minato asked worriedly, his blue eyes filled with worry as he looked down at her. Kushina paused for a moment, but frowned and pushed his chest, signalling for him to put her down, which he did promptly. Glaring down at the ground, Kushina tried to shrug off the fact that he caught her by brushing her clothing, ridding it of dust as she turned her back to him to also try and hide the blush that tinted her cheeks._

_"I'm fine..." She muttered._

Kushina awoke with an irritated expression, much to her annoyance, turning over onto her side, only to be greeted with the sunlight seeping in through the thin blinds of the windows. Groaning, Kushina rolled back onto her other side, pulling the white hued sheets over her head and laying there for a while. When she figured she couldn't go back to sleep, she growled irritably and kicked her sheets off, then rolled out of her bed. After leaving Minato at the training grounds yesterday, Kushina went searching for an apartment like she said that she would. She had started by asking some villagers (who proved to be sympathetic with her situation), and was pointed in the direction of a few vacant apartments. Then she had to go through finding them on her own and convincing the landlord to allow her to stay under the condition of her doing some chores/D-Ranks for the landlords and such, which of course it took her a while, but before the end of the day, she found a nice couple who allowed her to use one of their empty rooms. The landlady also had spare clothing from when her own daughter was younger, so she kindly donated them to Kushina, who thankfully accepted them as well. So the kunoichi was currently wearing some baggy clothing for night clothes.

The kunoichi sighed and looked around the apartment. It was a good sized one, the living room itself was rather large, the bed set in the corner of it next to one of the two windows with a small table set in the center of the room. A stove and a sink were placed on the opposite side of the room where the bed rested, a small fridge next to it. Bathroom, restroom (separate rooms), and a convenient storage room which was rather large itself, which looked as if it had probably could've been a bedroom from what the former Uzu-kunoichi could see.

Kushina just pulled the chair out, sitting down and pulling her breakfast towards her: the leftover dango sticks from yesterday, which wasn't much of a breakfast, but it served her purpose as it was still food, atleast. She'd eat proper meals once she actually got settled into the village. Drowsy-eyed, Kushina ate her dango in silence before she got up, dumping the used dango stick in the trash before trailing towards the fridge to get a drink, hoping there was atleast a bottle of water in there, which luckily for her, there was.

_Have to thank the landlord's wife later..._Kushina thought tiredly, taking the bottle out of the small refrigerator and using her foot to close the door before trailing back to the dining table. She ate the rest of her "breakfast" in silence, before a knock at her door caused her gaze to look over to the door. With a sigh, she put the water down and got up, once again taking the half-eaten dango stick with her. Kushina walked over to the door and used her free hand to open it, eyes trailing upwards a little.

"Ah... Retsuya-san..." Kushina swallowed her mouthful before speaking. "Thanks for the apartment as well as the clothing and water.."

"Oh no, no, Kushina-chan." Retsuya smiled and waved her hand up and down slowly. "You're just a young girl on your own, after all. It's the least we could do, especially since you've just arrived here."

Kushina didn't want to be rude so she didn't take another bite out of her breakfast, nodding and bowing a bit. "Thank you so much..."

"Oh, dear, it's no problem." Retsuya kept smiling. "Oh, the reason I came up here..." The old woman dug into her apron pocket, pulling out a folded letter and holding it delicately between her fingers as she held it out to Kushina, whom took it carefully.

"It's from Hokage-sama." Retsuya stated when Kushina examined it. Kushina blinked at this, looking over at the landlady. Retsuya understood the look, but shook her head.

"Iie, I didn't tell him. I guess he has a knack with knowing? He is nicknamed the Professor, after all..." Retsuya chuckled, but turned around. "I'm sorry, Kushina-chan. That was rude of me to interrupt your breakfast, but I thought a letter from the Hokage was important."

"Oh, it's not a problem, Retsuya-san," Kushina called, stepping out of the apartment a bit to see the older lady walk down the stairs. "I'll think of someway to pay you back for your hospitality!"

"Later, later, Kushina-chan. Don't forget about Hokage-sama's letter, now..."Retsuya's voice drifted up in reply before she vanished down the stairs. Kushina nodded a bit at this, before withdrawing back into her apartment, closing the door behind her, before quickly polishing off the rest of the dango and kept the last of the sticks in her mouth as she walked back over to the bed, eyes looking down as she carefully opened the small envelope. Kushina turned her head and spat out the stick into the trashbin before flopping onto her messy bed, resting on her side while she read the letter.

_Uzumaki Kushina,_

_I'm hoping this letter actually gets to you. I'm not sure where your apartment is exactly, I just gave it to a Chuunin to find you, or atleast someone whom knew of your current whereabouts. Hopefully this arrives to you within a week.  
Aside from that, I forgot to give you a Konoha hitai-ate as well as a Chuunin vest- if you want either. Though it'd be probably best to have the hitai-ate at the most, Kushina-san. Any reckless ninja might attack you if you had an unfamiliar hitai-ate. And we've got to officially promote you to Chuunin, before I forget.  
I'm sure you won't get lost on the way to the Hokage Tower, after all, Minato showed you around, did he not? I'm sure he did a good job- he's a nice kid so you should ask him for help if you ever need it. _("What's with people and telling me to ask blondy for help?" Kushina growled to herself.)  
_As for money, you need some, don't you? Knowing most of the landlords residing in Konoha, I'm sure you're on a small loan of some sort... Unless you slept outside, which you should come see me if you did. _("Like hell I'm sleeping outside.")  
_Anyways, if this letter is delayed, there's no need to worry. But still come by as soon as you get this letter, if you can._

_Good day. - Sarutobi, Sandaime Hokage_

Kushina just lay there lazily with the letter in hand. After a while, she sat up and slid off the bed, folding the letter and placing it back into the fancy-looking envelope, placing it on the table. She trailed over to where she threw yesterday's clothing in a pile, picking up the weapon pouch that was discarded with the clothing. Kushina opened the pouch and pulled out a scroll, lowering down with a sigh as she rolled it open, placing her palm flat on the parchment and conjuring a clean set of clothing.

"Geez, and I always thought this "emergency kit" was useless. Thanks, 'tou-san. Only flaw is that you didn't pack any nightclothes or food for me... But you made it so it was for missions rather than something like this. Thanks anyway, 'tou-san." Kushina sighed wearily upon remembering her father, before she took the folded clothing and rolled the scroll closed, leaving it on the floor and deciding to pick it up later. The kunoichi quickly changed out from her night clothing into the ones she just conjured, picking up yesterday's clothing as well and throwing them into the small drawer that came with the apartment. She was about to leave for the Hokage Tower, but halted half-way to the door. Kushina trailed back over to the drawer, opening it and digging through the pockets of the previous days' pants, pulling out a familiar gift.

A pair of black, fingerless gloves with the Uzu symbol stitched onto the top in light blue, and some small metal buckles so it could be adjusted around the wrist.

Kushina lowered onto her knees as she slipped these onto her hands, adjusting them one by one so that they fitted her own wrist size rather than her brother's. The kunoichi finally got up and walked towards the door, slipped on some zori, walked out, locked the door, and went down the stairs to be on her way. Her Uzu hitai-ate was left folded neatly on the dining table, Kushina deciding that it'd be wise to follow the Sandaime's suggestion. And she was going to be a Konoha kunoichi from today onwards

She channelled some chakra to her feet so that she could leap onto the rooftops of some buildings, pausing on one roof to look around for the familiar red tower before she spotted it, and studied the distance between her apartment and the tower, guessing it was probably about ten blocks or so apart. It wasn't so bad, she thought, so Kushina started making way towards the Hokage Tower via rooftops and chakra. As she travelled she also examined the streets, figuring ways she could get back to the apartment without having to travel by rooftop. Kushina took a final jump off another rooftop, using a quick shunshin jutsu to land in front of the Hokage Tower.

She entered through the door and then climbed up the stairs, reaching the top floor before long. Kushina searched her memory as she trailed down the corridor, trying to remember the way Minato had shown her the previous day, before she halted in front of a door, staring at it for a bit before knocking on it, and Sarutobi's familiar voice answered, "Come in..."

Kushina pushed the door open and then pushed the door closed behind her once she entered the room. The Sandaime Hokage looked up from his paperwork, which he placed down upon seeing the kunoichi.

"Ah, Kushina-san... Glad to see my letter arrived to you properly. Have you settled in?"

The kunoichi nodded slightly. "A little bit... I found a nice couple who let me stay in an apartment room if I do some chores and errands for them..." She replied. Sandaime blinked at this.

"And what of food and clothing?"

"Clothing I have, thanks to my dad and his emergency scroll that he made up in case of similar situations like this..." Kushina mumbled. "It's so we don't have to carry bags around, only a few scrolls. It's actually pretty useful..."

Sarutobi dipped his head in a few curt nods. "I see... You're lucky your father was prepared..." He murmured, silencing himself to give Kushina few moments to mourn over her father. She remained quiet for a few moments, before looking back over at the Sandaime. Sensing that she was finished, Sarutobi went on.

"And food?"

"..." Kushina stifled a weary sigh. "I can probably ask the landlady to give me a few snacks so I can survive atleast a week..." She grumbled. "Then maybe I can go for a part-time job or something to get some money for actual food..."

Sarutobi nodded slowly. "... Very well then..." He murmured as he bent down to his left, pulling open a drawer and taking out a neatly folded hitai-ate. He straightened and got to his feet, leaning over the desk just slightly and holding out the hitai-ate to Kushina using both hands. The kunoichi stepped forward at this, taking the headband from his hands and bowing as she did. Kushina stepped back, unfolding the cloth and then raising her hands, tying the hitai-ate onto her forehead, fingers brushing her short red hair to cover some parts of the cloth and metal band. Kushina slowly lowered her arms, looking back over at the Sandaime and grinning a bit. Sarutobi returned that with a smile of his own.

"As Sandaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato, I welcome you as a full-fledged Chuunin, Uzumaki Kushina."

"Arigatou, Hokage-sama!!" Kushina bowed low, much like when she first met Sarutobi, before she raised her form again. "I don't need the vest, Hokage-sama. I'll stick to my regular clothing for now." Kushina said before Sarutobi could ask, ruffling her own clothing a bit. The Sandaime nodded.

"Very well. You may go.. I'll summon you whenever a mission shows up, since you could use the money."

"But... The village needs the money more than I do..." The kunoichi murmured, shifting her gaze away. "I'll be fine, Sandaime-sama, honestly... 'tebayo... Like I said, I can find a part-time job or something..." Gathering some courage, she returned her brown-red eyes back over to the Hokage. "Please don't worry about me. I'll be fine, dattebayo."

Sandaime blinked at this, before smiling and nodding. "Very well, Kushina-san."

"Arigatou..." Kushina bowed once more, before she turned to leave, opening the door and closing it behind her. She leaned against the door, exhaling a long sigh, though she didn't know what it was for. It could've been because she'd have to work at some place to get some spare change to buy food, or it could've been that the Sandaime was concerned for her. A lone kunoichi. She wasn't really worth worrying over.

Kushina shook her head, using her hands to get off the door and walk out of the building. For now, she'd probably ask the landlady if there were some errands she could run, then she would head over to the training grounds for a bit to practice chakra molding. That would probably do for the day. With her day planned out rather lazily, she used a shunshin to get out of the building, starting to make way towards the apartment.

* * *

"Errands, you say?" Retsuya repeated with a few blinks of her eyes. Kushina nodded sheepishly a bit.

"Hai. I need to repay you for allowing me to stay in the apartment..." The kunoichi said, unconsciously fiddling with her fingers behind her back. "I don't want to seem like a freeloader to your husband's eyes."

"Oh dear, you needn't worry about the old fart." Retsuya chuckled, placing a hand on Kushina's shoulder. "You remind me much like our daughter, so you're allowed to stay as long as you like. Even like a family."

_Family..._Kushina's eyes glazed a bit at this. "But atleast allow me to do some errands, then! I still feel I have to repay you..." Kushina murmured, looking up at the landlady. Retsuya blinked, but she nodded with a kind smile. She pulled her hand off Kushina's shoulder, turning around to go back into her house- which was right below Kushina's apartment room, the kunoichi noted.

"I'll go get the list of things I need. You can come in if you like, dear." Retsuya offered, walking back into her home. Kushina nodded, stepping into the house and using her feet to take off her zori, also using her feet so that they were placed neatly next to each other. Kushina stepped into the apartment and clearly noticed the light aroma of flowers. She looked around a bit, the rows upon rows of potted flowers highly noticeable. The kunoichi took the time to admire some of the beautiful colorings of some flowers, eyes curious and examining the ones she wasn't familiar with.

Retsuya trailed back into the room moments after with a small slip of paper, blinking when she saw Kushina leaning against the table and examining some of the potted flowers. The landlady smiled lightly, quickly walking over to a simple drawer and pulling out a pencil, jotting down a few more words at the bottom of the list. Retsuya shuffled over to Kushina, who straightened herself when she approached, and handed the kunoichi the list and then digging through her pockets.

"Here's some yen... Personally, I think the Yamanaka Hana shop has the best choices," Retsuya smiled, handing over the paper money- as well as a few coins- into Kushina's hands. The kunoichi nodded, sliding the money and the list into her pockets. "It's just down the street from here... You can't miss it; it has plenty of flowers outside its shop, even."

Kushina nodded once more, before she straightened herself and raised her hand in a playful salute. "Yes ma'am."

Retsuya decided to play along. "You know your duties, private. ... Oh, and Kushina-chan? The new hitai-ate matches you well." Retsuya smiled.

Kushina grinned, nodding firmly with a thanks and turning around. She lowered to slip on her zori, stomping on the floor lightly a few times to make sure they were on correctly and then leaving the apartment complex, jogging down the streets a bit. She slowed to a walk, eyes searching down the street to see if she could spot the flower shop ahead. She sighed, but kept walking forward.

She blinked and halted, looking over her shoulder when she walked past a familiar pair.

"Eh?" Minato stopped and turned around as well, blue eyes somewhat surprised. "Ah, Kushina-san..." He held a sheathed sword by the hilt, resting it against his shoulder casually. Jiraiya stopped a few footsteps ahead of the blonde, waiting for him.

"Oh... Blondy. Hey." Kushina muttered as she turned to face him. Minato smiled, turning a bit as well.

"Konnichiwa, Kushina-san... Been finding your way around the village all right?" Minato asked. The corner of Kushina's mouth twitched a bit, but she tossed her head a bit.

"Of course I am. I'm just running some errands for the landlady who owns the apartment I'm staying at." The kunoichi replied, snorting a bit as she folded her arms. Minato blinked but nodded.

"Ah, I see." He said with a smaller nod.

"Oi, come on, Minato," Jiraiya called from ahead. "We don't have all day. I don't want to hear you complaining that there wasn't enough time."

"Hai, sensei...!" Minato called back, before turning to Kushina. Much to her discomfort, he grinned rather smugly.

"The Konoha hitai-ate looks nice on you, Kushina-san. Don't get lost, now." Minato kept grinning, before he turned on his heels and took a few big steps to catch up to his white-haired sensei. "See you around, Kushina-san!" He called over his shoulder. Kushina growled at this, feeling her face turn red against her will. She shook a fist over her head, yelling back at him, "Did you have to grin like that?! Stupid blondy!!" Of course she drew quite a bit of attention from that.

Jiraiya glanced back at her, before slipping his hands into his pockets and titling his head to look down at the young Chuunin. "... Do you like her?" The toad-summoner questioned. Minato stuttered at this, looking over at his sensei with a flustered expression.

"No..! Well, as a friend, yes... You always assume that whenever I talk to a girl, sensei...!" Minato accused, throwing out his lower lip in a small, childish pout. Jiraiya just shrugged a bit.

"Whatever you say, Minato. I'm just saying that you'll be getting a girlfriend eventually." Jiraiya grinned a bit. "It shouldn't be hard, with me as your sensei." He placed a hand on Minato's head, rubbing his head just to mess up his hair. The blonde grumbled at this, blushing much to his dislike.

"I'm _not_going to take after you and be a pervert, sensei..."

* * *

"Stupid blondy." Kushina muttered for probably the tenth time since she encountered Minato, silently storming down the streets. But she remember what she had to do and kept a look out for the flower shop, sharpening her sense of smell a bit to see if she could detect the flowers' aroma. Soon enough she could smell a light scent hanging in the air, and she followed it, weaving around villagers as she made way down the street.

Eventually Kushina spotted a small store with a good amount of potted flowers outside, as well as the large sigh hanging above the doorway that said Yamanaka Hana. Kushina slipped her hand into her pocket, fingers pulling out the list while eyes examined the list. A few bags of seeds, some spare pots and dirt, and so forth. She glanced up at the sign to make sure, before she slipped into the store, almost immediately being greeted by a warm, "Hello there!", causing the kunoichi to jump a bit.

A girl around Kushina's age leaned against the counter, smiling rather brightly when she saw that a kunoichi had entered. She was most likely of the Yamanaka clan, but sporting blonde hair that threatened to turn light brown, unlike the other members of the clan.

"Hi..." Kushina replied back quietly. She took a quick look down at the list again, before looking around the shop. "..." Kushina was rather unfamiliar with all the flowers, especially their names and appearances. The girl behind the counter noted his confused expression, getting off the counter and walking around it as she approached the kunoichi.

"Need some help?" She asked. Kushina looked over at the Yamanaka with a slight nod. Kushina couldn't help staring a bit at the girl's eyes, which were a light crystal color. _Nice eyes... _

The Yamanaka blushed a bit, as if reading the kunoichi's mind. "Oh, uh. The eyes, right? Yeah, I hear from a lot of people..." She murmured, before extending a hand. "It's been a while since a kunoichi's been in here. I'm Yamanaka Inosae, but just call me Sae."

Kushina nodded slowly, taking Sae's hand into her own gloved ones. "I'm Uzumaki Kushina..." She introduced sheepishly. Sae's mouth dropped a bit.

"_Uzu_maki?! Like the country?! Are you from there?!" She asked rather excitedly. Kushina shifted awkwardly.

"Err, yeah. I came from there." Kushina replied. Sae grinned.

"That's cool... I heard there were a lot of lyre flowers there, unlike over here." Sae blinked, and stopped herself before she could start ranting. "I'm sorry... I have a fetish when it comes to flowers from other countries... Especially if they aren't common around here." Sae explained. Kushina blinked at this, but she grinned back.

"It's alright."

Sae smiled wearily at this, but leaned over to peer at the list, which she snatched from Kushina once she caught sight of some of the items. Her eyebrows both shot up once she confirmed what she thought she read.

"Ohhh! This is Retsuya-san's list, isn't it...?!" Sae asked, looking over at Kushina and pointing to the list with one hand. Kushina blinked at how excited the Yamanaka sounded, nodding slowly.

"Yeah... I'm doing errands for her since she let me stay in the apartment for free..." Kushina explained shortly. "I'm trying to repay her for her generosity, 'tebayo..."

Sae nodded in understanding, before scanning the list. "Ohhh..." Sae continued to scan the list, murmuring to herself inaudibly. "Most of these flowers represent protection and love..." Sae raised her head and scanned the shop herself, turning her body to get a glimpse at the flowers behind her. She nodded, looking back at Kushina. "Behind the counter are the pots and such... I'll gather the flowers for you."

Kushina returned the nod, trailing over to the counter while Sae rushed off to different parts of the shop, examining the flowers as well as the leaves and such. The Uzumaki kunoichi stepped behind the counter and lowered down to examine the hidden shelves, red-brown eyes peering at the tan-colored pots, examining them by size before pulling out about two mid-sized pots, placing them on the counter. Kushina jumped when she found Sae on the other side of the counter with a few potted plants already set on the counter.

"Kinda jumpy, aren't you?" Sae smiled a bit. "But I guess it's my fault... My parents are ninja so I guess I have a thing for walking with silent footsteps... It's kind of awkward walking around the house with your footsteps being the loudest..." She explained. It made sense to Kushina, but she wouldn't really know, considering that her family was gone now.

"Anyways... I got most of the plants on the list, but the rest are just seedlings." Sae said, pointing to the plants one by one. Kushina looked down at the plants as well, recognizing the small bamboo plant as well as a couple of blue forget-me-not flowers, then there were a few roses of different colors- the rest Kushina weren't familiar with. Sae grinned as she walked around the counter to join Kushina, turning around to the wall behind the cash register and looking up at the shelves that leaned against the wall. She stretched a bit to get a bag of seeds, multi-tasking with her other hand, which grabbed a bag of seeds to her left as well. Sae turned around and placed the bag of seeds on the counter before lowering down, pulling out a lot of plastic bags. One by one Sae placed a couple of plants together in one bag, and layered the bag with another one so it wouldn't tear open at the bottom. Once the pots and plants were bagged, she put the seeds in a smaller plastic bag.

"... Hey, do you mind if I tag along, Uzumaki-san? If Retsuya-san is buying all these plants..." Sae said as Kushina handed her the money. Sae punched a few buttons on the register, backing up in time before the sliding drawer could hit her in the stomach. The Yamanaka put the money in and drew out a few smaller yen as well as a couple of coins, placing them in Kushina's open palm, who pocketed the money, nodding in response to Sae's question.

"Sure... And just call me Kushina." The kunoichi replied. Sae grinned at the positive response. She turned on her heel, murmuring for Kushina to wait a bit as Sae disappeared into a room at the back of the store. The Yamanaka returned moments later, still grinning as she pulled the bags off the counter to help Kushina.

"Alright, let's go then, Kushina-chan..." Sae said once Kushina herself grabbed the remaining bags. "My mom's going to watch the shop."

Kushina nodded at this, walking along Sae as they left the shop and walked down the streets back towards the apartment. The two chatted with each other along the way, and Kushina began to feel a lot more open to comfortable to being opened up like. Especially to another girl- who once had been a kunoichi, from what Kushina's learned so far out of Sae. Kushina was relieved at this- atleast she'd have a friend she could talk to in this village. And she was also somewhat relieved that Sae didn't seem to mind her tomboy-ish demeanour. Back in Uzu, most of the girls would try to avoid her because of it, so she made friends with the boys. Which accounted for her tomboy personality. Of course, Kushina wouldn't inform Sae of her village's destruction as if yet... She would, if Sae would remain her friend that long.

"... Wait, you mentioned some guy, right? "Blondy"? Is he a Yamanaka?" Sae questioned. Her eyes were curious as she looked over at Kushina, awaiting an answer. Kushina snorted a bit as she shook her head.

"Nah, I'm sure he's not a Yamanaka... His name was Minato or something... Namikaze? Yeah, I think that was it..." Kushina explained, wracking her brain to remember Minato's name aside from "blondy". Sae blinked.

"Ohh, Namikaze-kun? Yeah, he's a nice guy. He didn't show you around with his sensei, did he...?" Sae asked, looking somewhat serious. Kushina didn't really enjoy that expression, inwardly fidgeting.

"The old guy? Nah. Why?"

"Oh, that's good... It's 'cuz Jiraiya-san is a pervert..." Sae sighed wearily, hanging her head a bit. Kushina's eye twitched as she halted in the middle of the street, but began walking once more to catch up to Sae. "A pervert? Geez, blondy better not be-"

"Oh no! Namikaze-kun isn't a pervert! ... Well, from what I know. We haven't talked in a while since he became a genin and started training for the Chuunin Exams..." Sae murmured, thinking for a bit. "But Namikaze-kun's a nice guy... I'm sure a polite guy like him won't become a pervert..."

"Then again, he's a guy..." Kushina snorted. "Why are we talking about him, anyway?"

Sae shrugged a bit. "I don't know. Maybe it's because you two would look cute together?" Sae just said out of a whim. Kushina didn't take the joke too well, halting in the middle of the street once more. Sae halted a couple of steps ahead of the Uzumaki kunoichi, looking back at her.

"Oh... I'm sorry, that was a joke... But you don't like him? Like, not even as a friend?" The Yamanaka asked. Kushina snorted inaudibly as she caught up with Sae. "As a friend, I guess. But no... I don't like-like him..." Kushina grumbled, shifting her gaze away. Sae blinked and then smiled lightly. "Alright... Now let's get these over to Retsuya-san, alright?"

"Oh, Inosae-chan! What a surprise! How are you?" Retsuya clasped her hands together as she stood in the doorway of her house, eyes shining and her mouth formed in a smile as she looked down at the two teenaged girls. Sae grinned back, holding the plastic bags up to shoulder-level.

"I'm doing fine, Retsuya-san. Just helping Kushina-chan over here with the flowers. And with all these new plants..."

Retsuya chuckled, beckoning the girls to hand her the plastic bags, which they did. Retsuya peered inside each of them, but gave a bag back to Kushina. "Hold that one, dear.." She murmured, turning around and shuffling into the house. The landlady returned moments later, carrying a couple of the empty pots, a couple of seed bags, and the potted bamboo plant.

"Now let's go up to your room, Kushina-chan..." Retsuya said with a smile. Kushina blinked at this, looking rather dumbfounded. "Uh?"

"Well, they need to be in your room if they're yours, don't they?" Retsuya winked a bit, but ushered the two girls out of her doorway and up towards the stairs. Retsuya gave Sae the two pots as well as the seed bags.

"Inosae-chan, would you mind filling them with-"

"Dirt? No problem!" Sae grinned and took the bags and pots, hugging them as if they were little pups or kittens. The Yamanaka turned around and scurried over to some open ground, while Retsuya continued to usher Kushina up the stairs. The old woman expected Kushina to ask questions, which she answered simple and quickly.

"But Retsuya-san, these are your flowers, aren't they? 'Tebayo...?"

"Well I bought them for you."

"Demo, Retsuya-san...!"

"Now now, Kushina-chan. There's no need to be so modest. Taking care of flowers are a good past time..."

"..." Kushina sighed a bit, going up the rest of the stairs without Retsuya nudging her up. She walked past a couple of doors and dug through her pockets, pulling out the key and unlocking the door. She turned the doorknob and pushed the door open, immediately turning around to face the old lady.

"Err. It's a mess in there, so can I clean up real fast, datte'yo?" Kushina asked, setting the plants down by the door way. Retsuya smiled, and Kushina immediately scurried into her room, picking up her mess as well as quickly making the bed in a simple manner. She also collected the plastic container that was previously her dango's home and threw it into the small trashbin, before returning back to the door to be greeted by both Retsuya and Sae.

"Etou.. Come in?" Kushina said awkwardly, opening the door wider. Sae just grinned and stepped in, immediately looking around and searching for a good place to set the pots down. She trailed over to the window next to the bed, placing the two pots on the windowsill and making sure they were a good distance apart. Sae turned around, the grin still on her face as she motioned to the dirt-filled pot closest to her.

"This one'll grow into a red carnation, which stands for happiness and love. While the one over there," Sae pointed over to the other pot on the far side of the windowsill. "Will grow into cute lil' white heathers, which means protection and that your wishes will come true."

Retsuya chuckled at this, trudging over to the sink and placing a couple of the plants under the faucet, slowly turning the knob so that only a little pressure of water poured into the pots. "Then there are the forget-me-nots, in memory of your lost ones, Kushina-chan... The bamboo, which you only have to water twice a week, stands for protection, grace, and longevity."

Kushina wearily fiddled with the buckles of her fingerless gloves, looking both flustered and thankful. "You're really giving me these flowers...?"

"Why not?" Sae asked, walking over and standing next to Kushina, her arms folded behind her back while she rocked back an forth on her heels patiently. "All girls are like flowers- we can be strong, even during winter, if we just get a little attention... We all start out small, then blossom into a beautiful flower or leaf." Sae smiled, having to tilt her head slightly to meet Kushina's eyes. "I'm sure you'll be very pretty when you grow up, Kushina-chan. I'll be sure of it."

Kushina's eyes widened a bit at this, before she smiled, eyes looking watery. Due to her tomboyish nature, she quickly wiped them away and tried to hide them. "Thank you... Retsuya-san... Sae-san."

Retsuya smiled, pulling the plants out of the sink and placing the bamboo close to the sink, carrying the forget-me-nots towards them. "Now let's find a place for these little ones, and we'll tell you how daily to water these flowers..."

"Hai..."

* * *

"... I'm starting to get a little hungry..." Kushina muttered as she hopped onto the fence of the training grounds, ignoring the rattling sound the metal made upon the new weight. She rested atop the fence for a bit with a sigh, rubbing the back of her neck. Of course, she still didn't have any money to get food, so she wouldn't train herself too hard today. But she still had some energy left in her- learning how to water flowers isn't exactly energy-consuming. Sae of course had to return to the shop, and Retsuya left Kushina to go train, wishing her luck with the flowers and so forth. With nothing else to do, and since she had planned to come here at the beginning of the day, she arrived at the training grounds.

"No lunch... I can't train for long." The kunoichi sighed, hopping off the fence and landing with silent footsteps onto the grass. She blinked and halted, turning her head to look around. The sound was definitely there. The sound of metal clashing against one another. The corner of Kushina's mouth twitched as she silently made way to the three stumps that Minato showed her. She pressed her back against the base of a tree and peered around it, eyes checking to see who was training.

Minato panted a bit, using Jiraiya's sword hilt to push back to a safer distance before returning his sword in a ready position, sweat causing his yellow bangs to stick to his forehead and forcing him to close one of his eyes. Jiraiya just remained calm, sweating himself, as he pointed the sword at Minato using one hand. After a few silent moments, Jiraiya lowered the sword to his sides with a sigh, his shoulders dropping.

"Oi, let's stop for the day, Minato. It's already been several hours nonstop." Jiraiya muttered. Minato looked a little disappointed at this, but he sighed, his own shoulders dropping as he lowered his guard.

"Hai, sensei..." He muttered, tipping the blade over his shoulder as he walked over to the three stumps, picking up his sheath and withdrawing the sword into it. Jiraiya did the same, tiredly holding the sheathed weapon down by his sides.

"We're calling it a day. But you're still a bit too tense around the shoulders... Minato." Jiraiya reported, walking over to his student and placing a hand on the blonde's head. "You gotta relax a bit. Especially during fights. You're always too tense."

Minato nodded at this, but sighed in slight disappointment. "I'll keep that in mind, sensei." He murmured. Jiraiya grinned a bit, pulling his hand off Minato's head with a wary sigh.

"I'm going to head back. You coming?"

"Nah... I'll stay back for a bit." Minato said, raising his hand to fix his hair. Jiraiya rolled his eyes. "You just never know when to stop, do you? But alright, it's your choice. Just don't pass out and end up sleeping outside or anything."

"Gee, thanks, sensei." Minato muttered as Jiraiya turned to return to the village. Jiraiya just chuckled, raising a hand in a wave before he vanished in a blur.

Kushina frowned from where she was hidden, inwardly sighing as she got up from leaning against the tree. _I'll walk around and explore the training grounds for a bit. That should give blondy enough time to finish his training and go home_. She thought as she leapt into the trees.

The kunoichi explored the training grounds by the treetops, being sure to climb to the top of some trees every now and then to look around, making sure she hadn't strayed too far from the stream. Of course, she still wasn't familiar with the entire training grounds, so going too far from the stream would probably get her lost unless she had someone to guide her. Kushina kept going to the point where she could barely hear and see the stream, so she looked down and slid off the tree, lowering onto the ground when she landed to lessen the impact on her knees. She got up and brushed some of the leaves off herself, before she started to make way back towards the stream.

Kushina frowned a bit when she heard Minato's voice counting off sword swings, so she remained in the shade of the trees. She leaned against one tree, arms folded as she just watched him swing and count the sword. Kushina raised a hand to cover her mouth when she stifled a yawn, before opening her eyes when she heard a thud.

"Holy crap...!" The kunoichi leapt over the line of bushes when she saw Minato on his back on the ground. She quickly rushed over to him, approaching him and looking down at him.

"Eh?" Minato titled his head a bit to look up at Kushina, blue eyes clearly surprised. "Ah... Kushina-san... I didn't know you were around..."

Kushina awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck. "I... uh... Came over.. because I thought you.. y'know, passed out, datte'yo..." Kushina explained with equal awkwardness. Minato blinked at this, but wearily smiled.

"Ah... Well, uh, no... I just decided to lie down because I'm tired..." He explained. Kushina frowned, nudging his shoulder with her foot.

"Well the way you "decided" to "lay down" made it seem more like you passed out from exhaustion." She muttered. Kushina walked around him, lowering to pick up his sword, only to discover how heavy it was. _What the crap is this?!_But she kept that inward. She was still able to hold the sword, but it was rather weighted. Trying to ignore this, Kushina held out a hand, which Minato took and pulled himself up with.

"Arigatou..." Minato murmured with a nervous laugh. He turned his head and wiped his face with the sleeve of his shirt, before holding out his hand for Kushina to return the sword. She did, and she frowned inwardly when his hand didn't really go down from the weight. "Are you here to train?"

Kushina nodded a bit. "Yeah..." She muttered. "You know... the tree-climbing exercises and stuff..." Kushina shook her head a bit, jabbing a finger into his shoulder. "You shouldn't be training to the point where you're going to collapse, you know."

Minato blinked at this, but he wearily smiled. "Oh, you're worried about me? I'm honoured..." He immediately got slapped across the face, so Minato leaned against his sword to keep him from falling. Minato looked back over at Kushina, a somewhat dumbfounded look on his face.

"I guess I had that coming?"

"Hell yeah you did, 'tebayo." Kushina growled. Minato laughed wearily. He pulled his sword out of the ground, tiredly taking a few steps back and picking up the sheath and withdrawing his sword. While Minato did that, Kushina heard a low grumble, though she couldn't tell if that was her stomach or his. The blonde smiled nervously.

"Looks like we're both hungry, Kushina-san..." He said. Kushina nodded slowly. "Er.. Yeah..."

Minato kept smiling, walking towards the gates of the training grounds while blue eyes looked back at Kushina. "You should probably eat, too, Kushina-san. Unless you want to collapse like I did..."

The kunoichi snorted at this. "I probably won't be eating for another day or two, blondy..." She replied. Minato blinked at this. He halted and turned around with a questioning look in his blue eyes. "Why not? You don't have any food?"

"Or money, for that matter." Kushina muttered, and she couldn't help rolling her eyes. Minato's smile vanished at this reply.

"... Then, why don't I buy you some cup ramen or something? So you can survive the week?" He suggested, causing Kushina to double-take a bit. She stared at him once she organized her thoughts.

"... What?"

"I said-" "No, I mean. Why?" Kushina questioned in a resigned tone. "I'm not worth worrying over."

Minato stared at her in silence for a moment, causing her to look away. Kushina stared at the ground with a long, dragging inward sigh.

"Yeah you are."

Kushina looked up to find Minato grinning at her. She blinked in confusion, so the blonde went on. "You're from the Uzu no Kuni, Kushina-san... And possibly one of the last from that country..." His sentence slowed at that, but he continued. "That alone is a good reason to worry about you. And then there's all the jutsus that you can teach us..." He grinned at the last statement.

"..." Kushina just stared at him in silence, before sighing a bit, her shoulders dropping at this motion. "... Fine, you win." She muttered, breaking the silence that hung in the air. "Now buy me food like you said, 'cuz I'm starving, dattebayo."

"... Ahaha..." Minato laughed nervously at this. But nevertheless, he began walking once more when Kushina caught up.

"... We should go to Ichiraku Ramen.. It's a small family-business type stand, but they have one of the best ramens in the entire village." Minato explained. Kushina stared blankly at him for a moment, and then spoke after a while.

"Is ramen like your favorite food or something?"

Minato blinked at this, but laughed a bit. "Sorta, yeah... For one thing, it's affordable and if you ate one of Teuchi's ramens, you'd love ramen too."

"Oh really now?" Kushina raised a brow, but shrugged as she continued on to follow the blonde. "If they're as great as you say, then let's go."

"Hai, hai, Kushina-san."

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **I'm sorry if I got the beginning wrong. I have no idea about apartments and such like that, so I don't know if I call them landlords or what not or something smaller... I'm sure they're called landlords, though... Please bear with me if I got my apartment information wrong... x.x I honestly have no idea how apartments are, exactly... -sighsigh- Oh wells...  
Yosh! I'm determined! -clenches fists and gets a fiery look in her eyes- With this being my first romance fic, I'll work hard to get it nice and fluffy! Yosh!! ... But it'll be a little more into the future. -sighsigh-  
(... Also, if anyone has any good songs that they think might fit future chapters of this fic (use your imagination. X3), then would you mind recommending it or even sending it to me? xD; I need music... And they become the titles of these chapters, so... o.o)

Please ignore any parts that seem crappy and lack description. Dx Damn writer's blocks always get to me... You can probably tell on some parts.

I love your guys' reviews. So much. Especially if you're reading a fic like mines, which isn't as popular as some of the other MinaKushi fics I've seen. I admit, I'm a little jealous.. But I'll work hard!  
**Edit: **Fixed the Uzumaki/Uzu error on this chapter, too.  
**Edit number 2: **This chapter's been beta'd as well. o:


	3. My Pace

**Chapter III: My Pace**

"What? So you bought her a pack of cup ramen for the week?" Jiraiya questioned with a brow risen, the bottle of sake' pausing before his lips while eyes stared down at his student. When the blonde nodded, Jiraiya took a quick swig of his drink, gulping the beverage down before putting the bottle back on the table. The white-haired Jounin turned his body slightly and rested his elbow on the table, placing his hand in his palm as he looked over at Minato.

"Are you sure you don't like her?" Jiraiya questioned. If Minato weren't such a nice guy like everyone said he was, he probably would've punched Jiraiya or slapped him upside the head. But the blonde Chuunin only clenched his fist from where they rested on the table.

"I'm sure I only like her as a friend, sensei..." Minato muttered. Jiraiya rose a brow as he took another quick drink of his sake'.

"Really? 'Cuz your cheeks are red, Minato_-kun_," Jiraiya teased, putting high emphasis on the suffix. Minato looked flustered, and every retort-attempt came out in stutters, only furthering Jiraiya's smirk. Jiraiya laughed at this. He finally released hold of the bottle's nose, patting Minato rather heavily on the head.

"I'm sorry, Minato. But you look so cute when you're embarassed..." The Jounin's words were rather slurred by this point, and Minato groaned, his head lowered slightly because of Jiraiya's hand. Jiraiya finally pulled his hand off the blonde's head, before he drunkily took another swig of the sake'. He then held out the bottle to Minato.

"Are you sure you don't want any?" The white-haired shinobi questioned with a small hiccup in the middle of the sentence. Minato frowned and fanned the strong alcoholic scent away from his nose.

"No thanks, sensei... I'm just going to the training grounds... I'm under-aged anyway." Minato muttered with a grimance. Jiraiya shrugged at this and placed the bottle to his lips, titling the bottom completely upwards to chug down the rest of the sake'. Minato got up with a weary sigh, picking up his weighted sword and leaving the bar. He stepped outside and paused to let his eyes adjust to the sudden change in lighting, before he quickly vanished from the streets and made way to the training grounds via Shunshin no jutsu.

_Stupid sensei... Kushina-san's just a friend... Right?... Gehhh, baka sensei! That drunk..._ Minato growled inwardly. In a flash he halted at the training ground's main gates, before he used shunshin again to flick into the training ground. There, he was immediately met with a kunai inches from his face.

"Uwah..." Minato held his ground, eyes crossing a bit to stare at the tip of the kunai. The Hyuuga's eyes widened at this and he lowered the kunai, quickly backing away with his head low.

"I-I'm terribly sorry, Namikaze-san..." He mumbled rather formally with a low bow. Minato laughed a bit, rubbing the back of his head nervously. "Iie, iie, Hizashi-san... I shouldn't have used shunshin so suddenly..." The blonde replied. Hizashi still looked rather embarassed. Minato looked even more embarassed.

"You... _are_ Hi_z_ashi-san, right? I'm sorry, I can never tell you and your brother apart..."

The Hyuuga nodded. "Aah... I'm the only one of the two whom wears a hitai-ate." Hizashi muttered rather scornfully, but he looked back over at Minato. "You're always training so hard, Namikaze-san... I'm kind of jealous."

Minato stuck out his tongue a bit in an embarassed, childish manner, continuing to rub the back of his blonde-haired head. "Jealous of me? Why's that, Hizashi-san? You barely have to train at all because you're of the Hyuuga ichizoku... I'm just a commoner so I have to work hard just to catch up to Hyuugas and Uchihas..." Minato pointed out. Hizashi frowned rather sadly, too much for the blonde Chuunin's liking. The Hyuuga glanced away for a bit, shoulders dropping with a sigh.

"I... suppose that's true." Hizashi sighed. Minato wearily lowered his arm back down to his sides. "But I'm of the branch family of the clan, Namikaze-san. I don't get the real training like the main family does. We're only allowed to know so much..."

Minato flinched at this. He'd forgotten that the Hyuuga were divided into two houses.

"... Ja... How about we train together then?" Minato suggested, making Hizashi look back over at the blonde. "We'll both try hard to get stronger."

"Y-yes..." Hizashi nodded slowly. Minato grinned widely at this, before he slipped the sword off his shoulders and lowered it onto the ground.

"Then come at me with everything you got, alright, Hizashi-san?" He said as he lowered into a few leg stretches. Hizashi nodded slowly once more, before he parted his feet and raised his arms into the Juuken stance. Minato stretched his arms for a few brief moments, before he drew a kunai from his holster. The Byakugan activated at this, veins appearing on the Hyuuga's temples.

Minato darted for the Hyuuga, before he immediately disappeared into a blur. Hizashi saw every movement due to his kekkei genkai, immediately spinning around and blocking the punch that Minato threw his way, latching his fingers onto the blonde's fist. Using his free hand, Hizashi drew shuriken from his own holster and flung them at Minato. Minato quickly snapped his fist out of Hizashi's grasp and used shunshin to dodge the shuriken. Using the hawk-eye view of the Byakugan, Hizashi immediately found Minato and darted to where the blonde appeared next. His folded his ring and pinky fingers, jabbing his middle and index fingers into Minato's shoulder while in a proper Juuken stance. Hizashi felt the blonde's clothing brush against his fingers, and he frowned a bit when Minato quickly flickered out for sighed for a moment. _Missed..._

Minato appeared a good few years away from Hizashi, lowered onto one knee as he clutched the shoulder that was jabbed. _Ite..._ But he smirked and got to his feet.

"You've gotten alot faster since we last fought, Hizashi-san...," Minato complimented. "In the Chuunin Exams..."

Hizashi turned towards the blonde and remained in his Juuken stance. "Yes... Congratulations on becoming a Chuunin, by the way."

"Why thank you."

"And you've sped up yourself, Namikaze-san."

"Again, thank you." Minato grinned at this. He immediately disappeared from where he stood, a small amount of dirt being kicked into the air from his movement. Hizashi tensed at this, and immediately leaned back to dodge the punch that Minato threw head-on. Hizashi placed his hands on the ground and swung his feet up to kick Minato, whom easily dodged it. The Hyuuga flipped back onto his feet, his body lowered as he skidded across the ground on his feet. He leapt up and did a flip in midair to quickly dodge the barrage of kunais that came flining at him. Minato grinned a bit as he appeared into view once more. Hizashi just smirked slightly as well. Minato cracked his knuckles a bit as he thought to himself. _How should I do this...?_

His thoughts were interrupted when Hizashi disappeared from his sight, and Minato immediately used yet another shunshin to dodge being struck by a chakra-flooded palm from behind. The blonde appeared another few paces away, laughing nervously.

"Guess I shouldn't doze..."

Hizashi sighed a bit, his stance lowering with the sigh for a brief moment. "You could probably doze all you want and still dodge my attacks, Namikaze-san. You have incredible speed already... Even my eyes can barely detect your movements."

"You're being too nice, Hizashi-san.." Minato laughed with embarassment, cheeks turning a bit red as well. "I'm sure you're just exaggerating... An Uchiha could probably spot me easily, as well as any Hyuuga like yourself..."

Hizashi shook his head, but he returned a light smile. "Why would I exaggerate on something like talent?"

"Please stop... I'm probably red right now."

Hizashi shook his head for the year-younger blonde, but darted at the Chuunin once more. Minato dodged being jabbed into the shoulder once more, quickly lowering down and swining his leg to knock the Hyuuga over. Hizashi simply leapt over this and swiftly brought up his leg. Minato leaned back in time before he could get knee'd in the face, swiftly jumping back a few paces so the Hyuuga wouldn't follow the counter with Juuken strikes.

Hizashi bit back a sigh as he returned to his starting Juuken stance. He darted once more, but stumbled when a bird's screech echoed in the air. Embarassed, the Hyuuga quickly regained his footing and looked up, the veins along his temples receding. A black bird, almost crow-like, circled the air above them, screeching a few more times before flying off into the direction of the village. Minato watched it go with curious eyes, which looked back over at Hizashi.

The Hyuuga brushed the dust from his clan's robes, straightening himself as Minato approached.

"I'm sorry, Namikaze-san... We're going to have to cut our sparring match short." Hizashi apologized with a saddening look in his white-gray eyes. "I must return to the clan right now..."

The blonde seemed a bit disappointed as well, but nodded. "Alright... How about next time around, then?"

Hizashi continued to look sad. "... I'm not sure, Namikaze-san... This is probably one of the few instances I'll be allowed to train outside the clan..." He murmured, glancing away. "... I'll be just like the birds used for summonings and for delivery... I won't be the free birds like the main branch." The Hyuuga looked over at one of the trees, and Minato followed his gaze.

A small brown bird sat on the branch, staring at them with black eyes and tilting its head. As if to prove Hizashi's point, it stretched its wings and took flight, disappearing into the air and leaving behind a few feathers to flutter to the ground slowly.

Minato flinched. _I keep forgetting..._ He sighed at this and outstretched his hand. "Then I'll go to you. And we can train."

Hizashi gingerly took the blonde's hand, somewhat surprised at the firm grip. "... There's no need to worry about a caged, pet bird as myself, Namikaze-san. Focus on your own training and get stronger." Hizashi said. Minato grinned a bit, but it still showed a hint of disappointment.

"... Then promise me you'll train atleast twice as hard as me so you can be stronger than those of the main house... And make it your goal to demolish this whole main-house branch-house thing. I don't want this to be our last sparring session..."

"... Aah..." Hizashi smiled rather weakly at this, before releasing Minato's hand and running his fingers through his bangs to move them out of his face. "I'll probably see you around, then..." The Hyuuga murmured as he turned around. He crossed his arms a bit and held his elbows as he began walking, his head tilting forward somewhat. Minato just stared at Hizashi's back as he watched.

_... Don't lose hope, Hizashi-san... I know you can do it..._ Though Minato had to confess to himself, it seemed like Hizashi would have to take a long journey in order to obtain the goal.

It was nearly sundown when Jiraiya managed to shake off most of the alcohol, but he still had some in his system, and his stumbles during his walk proved otherwise. Of course, he had to stop every now and then on the side of the path to get most of the stuff out of his stomach. But hurling seemed to help a bit, since it got alot of the sake' out of his stomach. By the time he got to the training grounds, his stumblings and hiccups slowly ceased, and he was able to walk in a somewhat straight line. Not wanting to chance hopping over the fence, he just opened the rickety gate and entered.

He groaned a bit, from both the throbbing pain in his head and the sight of his student sleeping against one of the tree stumps. Jiraiya trailed over to Minato and halted before he could step on any of the scrolls that lay opened and scattered before the blonde. The white-haired Jounin looked down at all this, noting that most of the writing on the scrolls were scratched out. Jiraiya looked back over at Minato and then lowered down with a sigh, placing a hand on the blonde's shoulder and shaking him gently.

"Oi, Minato. Wake up..."

Minato stirred and opened his blue eyes, blinking them a bit. "..." He looked over at sensei, and drowsily rubbed his eye. "Ah... Sensei... I didn't notice you coming..." He murmured as he stifled a yawn.

"Of course you didn't. You were sleeping." Jiraiya said with a sigh, getting to his feeting and pulling his hand off Minato's shoulder to place on one of the stumps to steady himself. "If you wanted to develope a new jutsu, you could've came to me.."

Minato nodded sheepishly at this and gathered a few of the scrolls, rolling up most of the ones that were crossed out.

"What kind of jutsu is it?" Jiraiya questioned, causing the Chuunin to look over at him.

"I'm not too sure yet... But I'm going to try and make it a type of shunshin." Minato replied after he rolled up a few of the scrolls. He placed most of the failure ones in a pile, and making them disappear in a poof to leave a couple of scrolls. He picked up the remaining ones and got to his feet, turning around to Jiraiya.

"What do you mean a type of shunshin?" Jiraiya questioned.

"Mmm... Well, I'm trying to develope it so you have to have high speed, even to travel great distances in just a few moments, even less than that, if it's possible." Minato started as he placed the scrolls on the stump Jiraiya was leaning against. "Or maybe like a type of teleportation.. Not like the Kuchiyose no jutsu, but something like using the Kuchiyose as a base of reference."

"A high-speed teleportation-type of shunshin, eh?" Jiraiya rose a brow a bit. "I can help you out, but not today. It's already sundown and I'm still a little drunk. And ontop of that, you fell asleep in the grounds again." He said. Minato nodded with a sigh, picking up his weighted sword and slinging it across his shoulder using the rope that was tied to the sheathe. Jiraiya took the two scrolls and opened one of them, examining it the blood-drawn writing inside of it.

"What do you think so far, sensei?"

"I'm too drunk to thing straight, Minato... To be honest, I barely understood half of what you explained, so you're going to have to explain it all to me once I stop having a hangover." Jiraiya groaned as he suddenly remembered how much his head was throbbing, and he rubbed one of his temples. Minato sighed once more.

"Figures, sensei." Minato rolled his eyes. "Let's get you home so _I_ can go home."

_... Kushina-san is here again._ Minato thought to himself as he remained hidden in the shadows of the trees, peering around it carefully while blue eyes watched her. He sighed inwardly and leaned back against the tree, resting his head against the trunk and closed his eyes. "..."

He felt a sudden burst of chakra heading in his direction, so the blonde quickly used shunshin to get out of the way. He looked back and saw the small dog-shaped water slam against the tree he was hidden behind, two spots of the water yellow where the eyes would be.

"Who's there?" Minato heard Kushina call out. The water dog stepped forward once more, drenching whatever grass and foliage it touched. Minato fidgeted at this, cautiously sliding down from a tree and onto the ground. The dog tensed at this, but it slowly retreated back to the stream where Kushina stood atop. It stepped onto the water's surface and retreated to her side, towering over her. Kushina folded her arms, raising a brow.

"Well well, blondy. Spying on me? Looks like you take after your perverted sensei, after all..." She growled. Minato laughed wearily, rubbing the back of his neck as he approached the small stream. He halted once he was about a yard from the water's edge.

"No, not really, Kushina-san. I won't be taking after Jiraiya-sensei..." Minato stated. "I just got here..."

"Geez... Do you come here everyday or something?" Kushina questioned with her brow still risen slightly. The water dog slowly melted back into the water, causing the small tide to rise slightly. "You don't pass out everyday, do you?"

Minato blinked at this. "... You sound worried about me. Should I be honored?" He questioned with a steady smirk. Kushina frowned at this. "... Damn blondy." She muttered. "Shouldn't you be on missions or something?"

"I was just promoted to Chuunin a few days ago." Minato shrugged. "Besides, most of the vital missions at the moment are all A-ranked at the moment... Apparantly sensei got assigned one of those and left." Minato sighed.

Kushina returned his shrug. "So you come here to train everyday... There's something called a break you know."

Minato grinned slightly. "I don't have time to take a break."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, even a day break can get me rusted down to your level." He teased. Kushina fumed at this, fingers twitching at her sides.

"Did I just hear a challenge?" Kushina growled. So badly did her fingers itch to make a sign to send a Suiton jutsu his way. Minato's smirk only furthered at this, raising a brow to add onto it.

"It all depends on how you view it, Kushina_-chan_."

Almost instantly another blast of water shot his way, and Minato quickly forced chakra into his feet in order for him to jump over it. Kushina scowled rather darkly but performed another set of seals and ending with the snake seal. The stream's water came to life once more and shot into the air at the blonde. Minato simply dodged these attacks with shunshin. He slid his hands into his pockets and whistled a small tune, just to tease her a bit. Blue eyes stared into brown-red ones, another smirk crossing his face.

Kushina inwardly seethed at this and released the snake seal to preform another set of handsigns. This one lasted about ten seals longer, so she performed them quickly. This time, she quickly lowered down and placed her hands into the remaining stream water, which once more came to life. The water kept growing higher and higher into a huge wave.

Minato couldn't help his jaw from dropping a bit, obvious shock crossing his face. He quickly pulled his hands out of his pocket and made a handseal, forcing chakra to his feet before he made a break for it, running in the opposite direction when the wave came crashing down. The blonde glanced over his shoulder, before he got down on all fours like a dog and pushed off the ground further, disappearing in a shunshin.

Water flooded the area, before Kushina shifted so it came flowing back into the stream. Once most of the water was back and moving with the current, Kushina got to her feet. _He's fast..._

Kushina walked across the stream, frowning a bit when a couple of her footsteps sunk about an inch into the water. She jumped the rest of the way back onto land, brown-red eyes looking around for the blonde. The corner of her mouth twitched when she suddenly realized how large she had made the wave, so she groaned.

"Shit, you better be alive, blondy... I won't be making a good impression if I've killed one Konoha Chuunin..." The kunoichi muttered as she started to search for him. The grass was wet and it made a squishing noise beneath her zori-covered feet. A few faint coughs reached her ears and she quickly made way to where she heard it. She kept walking, eyes searching. _Geez... How far did he run?_ Kushina thought to herself, before she finally found the blonde laying on his back atop a thick bush. He was totally drenched, his mouth opened as he panted lightly. He rasied his head a bit when he heard Kushina's foosteps against the wet grass, and grinned a bit.

"Wow... I didn't see that coming, Kushina-san..." He commented a bit as he wearily sat up on the bush. Kushina sighed a bit in relief, continuing to stare at him. Minato shook his head to try and rid most of the water from his hair, which was proven fuetile. His hair remained a little flattened and slightly spiking downwards.

"Yeah. Well. You were irritating me, datte'yo.." Kushina muttered in reply to what he said moments earlier. She rolled her eyes a bit, and returned her gaze to him when she heard him laugh a bit.

"Aah... I'm sorry, Kushina-san..." Minato apologized with a nervous smile. He finally got off the bush and brushed the foliage off the back of his pants, back and head. Minato continued to rub his back, covering some of the pain with a nervous laugh. "Ouch... I landed on my sword..." He murmured, pulling the sword off his back and holding it by the sheath. Kushina just rolled her eyes.

"Ow?"

Minato just continued to laugh nervously. "Ahaha..."

"Here..." Kushina muttered, holding out her hand. "Give me your sword and you can wring out your clothes, 'tebayo." She looked up, only to find that Minato was staring at her with his face red.

"Uh..."

"Dammit, you _are_ taking after your sensei!" Kushina growled, though she turned a bit red herself. "Dammit, I meant like just a bit of your shirt! I'm sure if you stand in the sun or something your clothes would dry..." She muttered, turning her head to look away and avoid his blue gaze. Minato nodded slowly, still bushing a bit. "... Yeah..." _... Great Kami-sama, I hope I don't turn out perverted like sensei... Kushina-san would avoid me... Why do I care if she avoids me, anyway? _Minato thought to himself with a confused expression. Nevertheless, he shook his head and put his hand out, giving the sword to her. Again, Kushina frowned when the weight made her hand go down a bit.

"Why are you training with a damn heavy sword, anyway?" She couldn't help but ask. Minato wrung out the bottom of his shirt, letting the water fall to the grass.

"To raise speed and strength... But mostly speed, because I need it."

"What do you mean by "need" it, dattebayo? You already got enough of it, the way you outran my jutsu..." Kushina muttered. Minato shook his head and continued to wring the water out from his shirt.

"The jutsu I'm developing requires high speed..."

Kushina blinked at his answer, looking over at him and slinging the sword over her shoulder once she got somewhat used to the weight. "You're creating a new jutsu?"

"Hai." Minato replied with a grin. He shook his head again to get the water out, before running his fingers through it. "I want to develop atleast one jutsu and become one of the strongest shinobis in the village. And maybe to be recognized in other Shinobi Countries."

"Good luck with that. I've never even heard of you in my old country." Kushina muttered. She inwardly cursed for mentioning her former home, some sadness welling up in her, but she forced it down. Minato laughed nervously.

"I suppose not..." He said, before stepping out from under the tree and into the sun. Kushina shrugged and rolled her eyes.

"I'm fine with being a Chuunin, I suppose. Though I wouldn't mind recognition as a kunoichi." Kushina admitted. She turned and followed him, still holding onto his weighed weapon. "Especially when some men consider women weak."

"Of course women aren't weak, Kushina-san." Minato turned his head to look over his shoulder. "There's Tsunade-san, and yourself... I could've drowned to death just now, if it weren't for training."

Kushina rolled her eyes. "Oh wow, two kunoichi. Great." She muttered with sarcasm. "It's just that most girls decide not to become shinobi, and that's one of the reasons why men think we should just stay home as housewives or even become whores at the least." Kushina spat.

"..." Minato remained silent at this, eyes unreadable as they stared at her. "I don't think that at all, Kushina-san. I actually admire the girls whom become shinobis." He stated. He grinned slightly. "Then there's the fact that since their's so little kunoichi, it's what makes you unique."

Kushina blinked at this, and slowly turned her head to look away.

"Aww... Are you blushing?" Minato teased with a smirk, approaching her and lowering a bit to look into her downward gaze. Kushina stuttered at this. "O-of course not! Why would I?"

Minato shrugged a bit, but his teasing smirk returned. "I'm just saying, you look nicer when you don't look so angry, Kushina-san."

Kushina rose a brow. "... I look angry most of the time?"

"It's either that or you look sad, Kushina-san." Minato replied. "... I can understand why you're sad, but try not to be." He grinned a bit. "It's a whole new village with lots to do. And there's always atleast one interesting person."

"Like yourself?" Kushina replied back. She placed her hands on her hip, raising a brow as she eyed him steadily. "With that bright-yellow hair of yours, it puts the Yamanaka's blonde hairs to shame."

It was Minato's turn to stutter. "W-What about you...?! You're from a water-based country and your hair is red...!"

"Well I suppose I was the interesting person in my village, then." Kushina replied back coolly. "And now we're both the interesting people in _this_ village."

"I guess you're right." Minato laughed wearily. "See? You're beginning to look more happy already. And surely you've made a friend by now, right? Probably a Yamanaka, since you seem to have some knowledge of them?"

Kushina just dipped her head into a simple nod. "Yeah... Sae-san. She's a little hyper when it comes to flowers and stuff, but she's cool, datte'yo." She replied. Minato paused his shirt-wringing for a moment, eyes clouded with thoughts as he thought. His hands twisted the bottom of his shirt again, indicating that he was finished thinking.

"Inosae-san? Maa... It's been so long since I've last seen her. Is she doing well?" Minato questioned. Kushina nodded.

"Seems like it... She isn't a ninja or anything anymore. Dunno why, but I don't want to pry and lose a friend."

"Aww." Minato teased. He leaned back in time to avoid getting slapped across the face. "Joku dayo, joku... It's just a joke. It's nice that you want to keep Inosae-san as a friend."

Kushina snorted a bit. "Well, yeah... Especially since she's a girl too."

Minato just rubbed the back of his neck in confusion at this, but decided to take after Kushina and not pry into her business. "Aah."

Kushina just shrugged in response. She held out his weapon, and Minato quickly shook his head to get rid of some of the droplets that hung onto his spikey hair, before taking the weapon. "Arigatou."

"Yeah. Well. I should get going or something, dattebayo." Kushina said after a few silent moments, turning on her heels and hearing the squeak of the wet grass.

"Haha... It feels as though you avoid me sometimes, Kushina-san." Minato called. Kushina shrugged, raising a hand in a wave without bothering to turn around. Minato smiled lightly.

"Tell Inosae-san I said hi!" He called. Again, Kushina just raised her hand in acknowledgment. Minato watched her go with a smile, before sighing when she left. He quickly shunshin'd over to the tree stumps, and nearly slipped on the wet grass when he landed. The blonde leaned against one of the stumps, titling his head backwards to look up at the sky. Minato exhaled another sigh as he closed his blue eyes, but kept his head titled.

"Sensei... please come back... I can't understand this feeling..." Minato murmured, raising his free hand to clutch the part of his shirt that clung to his chest. "... Kushina-san... Do I...? ..." He opened his blue eyes once more as he continued to stare up into the sky, completely forgetting about training for the day as he was drowned in deep thoughts.

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **Drunken characters equal love. xP  
(ichizoku means clan, for anyone who doesn't know.)

I'm sorry, I just had to add a younger Hizashi in there. Pretty much all the parents will be showing up... Like, Sae will eventually grow up to be Ino's mom, Hizashi is Neji's, etc. It should be obvious at this point, but just in case people don't know... Well, they know now. xP -sweatdrop- Hehe...

Awww. I just _love_ typing this story. It's so much fun. And it seems like things are finally going to start getting into motion. o: But I'm going to try and stretch it out so the fic is as long as I can possibly make it, since there's so much scenes I want to type. Especially the scenes that are stuck. in. my. head and won't get out. Dx But they're cute scenes, so I'm definitely going to include them. Hehe. Wee.  
And again, I'm sorry. This chapter seems so much more shorter compared to the other two. (ohwells.)

I want my reviewsplz. c: Plzkthanxbai. -shot-  
**Edit: **Changed the title, 'cuz I found a song that matches better. kthanxbai. -shot again-


	4. Hareru Michi

**Chapter IV: Hareru Michi**

"You and Namikaze-kun sure do bump into each other a lot, don't you?" Sae questioned as she held one of the potted plants steadily balanced on her knee, one hand holding onto a small paintbrush delicately as she painted designs onto the plain pot. She pulled the brush away from the surface of the pot and dipped the brush into the plastic cup that held water, dying it a green color before she dipped the brush into another color and then painting on the pot again. Kushina shrugged from where she was sitting at the dining table, her legs folded and resting on the chair while she ate her lunch: a cup of ramen. The kunoichi carried on eating all of the noodles until they ran out, before she placed her wooden chopsticks on the table and titled the styrofoam cup and downing the broth.

"I guess. Almost every day or two." Kushina replied finally. She crumbled up the styrofoam cup and raising her hand to toss it into the trash bin, making it in. In a bored manner, Kushina broke off her chopsticks into a few wooden pieces, deciding to practice her aim and throw them into the trash from where she sat. Kushina got up once she made all of the trash into the rubbish bin and hopped onto her bed without thinking of changing out of her nightclothes. The kunoichi rested on her stomach, using her feet to kick her pillow up into the air so it landed before her, before resting her head and arms against the pillow as she watched her friend paint.

"He's always training. Like, everyday, no joke, datte." Kushina muttered. Sae looked over her shoulder at this, leaning back against the bedpost and proceeding with the painting.

"That sounds like Namikaze-kun alright. Always training constantly to get stronger and stronger... Did I mention that he only had to take the Chuunin Exams once?" Sae questioned, looking over at Kushina. "You were promoted Chuunin too, weren't you? Maybe you two were both in the same one? ... Or are the Exams different in Uzu?"

Kushina stifled a shrug. "Yeah, it was different back in Uzu. Our country was really small that not a lot of people actually knew about it, datte'yo." She replied. Sae looked back at Kushina again.

"... You speak in past tense?"

Kushina flinched at this. It seemed as though it was time to come clean and tell Sae of her former country. "... Yeah... Uzu was destroyed... That's why I came here.." She murmured. Sae exhaled a long sigh.

"Oh... I'm sorry, Kushina-chan... I'd give you a hug, but my hands are full and covered in paint." Sae smiled weakly at this, looking up at Kushina and raising her painting hand, which was indeed damp with a few dots of paint. Kushina smiled wearily but shook her head.

"It's alright... I'm not too used to hugs, anyway..." Kushina buried her face into her pillow when she felt the tears beginning to well up in her eyes, swinging her legs back and forth to try and hide the fact that she was starting to cry. Sae seemed to notice this almost immediately.

"... What're the names of your family, Kushina-chan?" Sae questioned as she got up from the ground, stepping off the newspaper-layered ground and onto the sink counter to place the painted pot by the sink and making sure it wasn't in direct sunlight. Kushina didn't lift her head from the pillow, just remaining still as if silently asking why. Sae trailed back over to the bed, footsteps silent as ever, then quickly climbed on top of it and avoiding stepping on Kushina to pick up one of the pots on the windowsill before climbing off the bed. Sae returned to where she was sitting on the spread-out newspapers, leaning against the bed post one more.

"I'm going to paint their names onto the pots of the forget-me-nots." Sae murmured as she smiled, turning her head to look over at the saddened kunoichi. "Makes sense, right?"

"..." Kushina remained silent for a moment, but didn't want to show her face still, so she just spoke through the pillow with her voice muffling a bit. "There was my mother, Tsuyu... Kaiyo was my father, and Mizuiro was my older brother... I would have had another brother, but he died with my mother while she was giving birth to him..." Kushina continued on, rather unconscious that she was still continuing on. Sae just let her continue on, knowing that letting all of this out would have been best for Kushina rather than bottling it all up for it to explode out later. The Yamanaka dipped the brush into another blue paint lightly and brought it up to paint the names that Kushina mentioned, eyes concentrating on making the design look night while her ears listened to Kushina unconsciously go on about her country.

"My mother died just a couple of years ago... So I've been really close to my family after that.. 'Specially nii-san, 'tebayo... I guess that's how I became a tomboy, since I've been spending more time with him rather than my friends- the girl ones... I talked like a guy and when I actually met up with my friends, the girl ones, they didn't seem to like me much anymore. Probably because I kept spending more time with my brother than them, and that I acted more like a boy than a girl unlike them..." Kushina murmured as she hugged the pillow tighter, keeping her face lowered as her shoulders shivered. "A lot of the girls were conceited back in Uzu, dattebayo... I probably was back then, too... But ever since 'kaa-san died... I guess it changed my perspective on things, datte'yo..."

"..." Sae paused a bit and turned her head to wipe her eyes on the sleeve of her shirt, since paint dotted her hands.

"... I don't know what happened after that... The village was attacked in the middle of the night... By whom or what, I don't know... But there had been word that someone has been destroying villages single-handedly... Mizuiro-nii managed to get me out of the village with only a head wound that he healed... He gave me the gloves that I wear as a parting gift, since 'kaa-san made them... He left me and begged me to live, before he ran back to the village to try and fight the enemy off... Mizuiro-nii was bleeding all over the place and on me... I don't want to think about it, but... he was probably finished as soon as he set foot back into the village streets, dattebayo..."

Kushina heard the paint brush clatter on top the newspaper covered ground, and she heard the pot being placed down gently. Kushina titled her head a bit to peer over the pillow to find Sae facing her with tears threatening to fall. The kunoichi sat up slowly, and almost immediately was met with a hug from the Yamanaka despite the paint on the brunette-blond's hands. Kushina tensed as if she had never been hugged before before she slowly calmed.

"I'm so sorry, Kushina-chan..." Sae whispered as she pulled away, sliding off the bed and picking up the pot. She was sure to be careful that she didn't smear the paint, showing it to Kushina with a slight smile.

Kushina's eyes widened at this. The Yamanaka painted the pot so beautifully, the names being in different hues of blue and with different swirls in varieties of shadings. Sae noticed the expression and smiled with embarrassment.

"I think it's one of my best pot paintings yet..." She murmured, climbing onto the bed and placing the pot back onto the windowsill. Kushina nodded slowly.

"Yeah..." She mumbled, rubbing her eyes dry. "Thank you, Sae, dattebayo..." Sae smiled wearily.

"You're finally not calling me "-san" anymore. That makes me happy. It means you're opening up." Sae said as she climbed off the bed, lowering to clean up the small mess she had created. She placed the brushes into the water cup and took both the artist pallet and the cup with one hand. She crumpled up the newspapers skillfully with one hand and tossing it into the trash bin. Sae then slipped over to the sink and turned the water on to clean the pallet and the plastic cup.

"..." Kushina just remained silent at this, deciding to help Sae a bit. She slipped off the bed and used her feet to stuff the newspapers further into the trash bin.

"You should go out with Namikaze-kun."

"Erk!" Kushina gritted her teeth when she felt a sharp pain shoot through her calf, obviously caught off-guard by her friend. Whimpering softly to herself, Kushina limped back onto the bed and rested on this, massaging her cramped calf while looking over at Sae.

"Wha-"

"Come on!" Sae begged as she looked over her shoulder with a pleading expression. She quickly turned back and turned off the faucet, quickly shaking her hands and wiping the rest of the water onto her clothing.

"Why?!"

"Because!" Sae retorted, spinning on her heels and placing her hands on her hips crossly. "For one thing, you need a guy! And with him wanting to train so much, you can provide by using some of your village's jutsus... Then there's the fact that you two look cute together!"

"No!!" Kushina growled. She clenched the bed sheets tightly, growling back at Sae. "Liking a guy will only... make me weaker..."

Sae couldn't help but scoff at this. "Well, that's probably what they thought in Uzu. But this is Konoha, Kushina-chan... Over here, we say that our power is at its peak when we protect someone. So stronger, yes. Weaker, _no_." The Yamanaka explained. Kushina raised her hands and crossed them together in front of her face, making a large X.

"Even so, 'tebayo! I'm more used to guys being my friends rather than... _boyfriends_..." Kushina growled, slowly lowering her arms back down. "I'm perfectly fine being single."

"You're gonna regret being single when you're older..." Sae replied in an annoying sing-song tone. "Come onnnn, Kushina-channn... Promise me you'll date at least _one_ guy in your lifetime... Uh, unless you don't like _guys_... but rather gir-"

"No! I'm straight, I'm straight!" Kushina sighed wearily at this, running her fingers through her hair to get a few of the small knots out. "... Fine, I promise, datte'yo... What about _you_?"

"What about me? Boyfriends? Nah. Eventually, though. It'll most likely have to be with a Yamanaka. Or someone with weak blood so my clan's blood overpowers it." Sae shrugged. "It's just a clan thing, you know? Of course, the Uchihas and Hyuugas have to pretty much strictly marry within the clan, from what it seems."

Kushina shrugged. "I dunno any Hyuugas or Uchihas, so. Don't really care. No offense. Datte'yo... I don't see what's so great about them anyway.. They're just the two biggest clans in the village, right?"

"And the strongest." Sae said, raising a finger. "They both have Kekkei Genkais that are powerful and are both Doujutsus."

"..." Kushina deadpanned a bit. "Kekkei Genkais and... dou..jutsus?"

Sae's face dropped a bit. "You guys didn't really have those kind of things back in Uzu, did you?"

"Not one bit."

"Okay." Sae sighed a bit. "Kekkei Genkais are literally what they are- bloodline limits. They're things you inherit only by blood. Like Hyuugas inherit the Byakugan, and Uchihas inherit the Sharingan. Both the Sharingan and Byakugan are Doujutsus- eye-based techniques. No one really knows how either bloodlines started, though the Hyuugas said that the Sharingan is like a type of branch-off of the Byakugan. But we'd probably have to ask someone like Hokage-sama, who's actually been around when the village was still growing into what it is today." Sae looked back at her kunoichi friend, whom just stared back at her blankly.

"Uhh... Well, to put it short... Sharingan is red with black dots, and are more for illusions and such... Byakugan is white and used for taijutsu reasons..."

"Alright." Kushina just mumbled as she rubbed her head. "Whatever, 'tebayo..."

The Yamanaka girl sighed wearily. There wasn't really much point in trying to explain these kind of things to Kushina unless she was interested. And in this case, she wasn't. Sae looked up when she heard a light tapping noise, light crystal colored eyes looking around the room a bit. Kushina followed suit by looking around, searching for the source of the odd tapping. Sae then trailed over to the window by the bed, climbing onto the bed and opening the window for the small bird to fluttering around the room, whistling. Sae's eyes skillfully watched the bird and every single one of its movements, before it flew back out the window and disappeared out of sight. Kushina continued staring at where she last saw it disappear, before she was snapped out of her through when Sae closed the window.

"Did you get that?" The Yamanaka questioned. Kushina blinked in confusion.

"Uh. It just wanted to fly around in here?"

"Oh..." Sae sighed. "I suppose I should teach you about the bird summons. Anyways, you were summoned to the Hokage Tower... Something about a mission, it seems?"

A grin formed on Kushina's face when the word mission was said. "Great." She said, quickly looking around the room. Sae nodded, watching her friend move over to the small drawer to gather some clothing. The Yamanaka turned around, walking toward the door.

"I'll see you around then, Kushina-chan." She said. Kushina looked up, but nodded a couple of times.

"Ah.. Alright then, Sae, datte'yo."

Sae nodded, smiling as she closed the door behind her. Kushina sighed a bit, conjuring a few clothing and quickly changing into them. She ran her fingers through her hair a couple of times to get ride of a few of the knots, before tying on her hitai-ate and moving toward the door, putting her zori on. She then left and made way toward the Hokage Tower, excitement welling up from inside of her. Her first mission as a Chuunin in Konoha. Hopefully it wouldn't be a total bust. She arrived within a few minutes, obviously hyper despite her small cry fest minutes earlier. Impatiently, Kushina entered the tower and found herself fidgeting a bit in front of the door to the Hokage's office, sudden nervousness replacing the excitement that once filled her mind. Kushina stared at the door for a few moments as she tried to settle her stomach down. Finally, she gathered enough courage to raise one of her hands and knock on the door a couple of times, awaiting the reply.

"Enter."

When the reply came, Kushina was a little surprised to see that part of her didn't want there to be an answer from the Hokage. Gingerly, she placed her hand on the doorknob and turned it, slowly entering. Upon the door opening, Sarutobi looked up from where he sat behind his desk with his hands folded on the desk's surface. A bird, much larger than the one that summoned Kushina, was perched on the edge of the desk, preening itself obediently.

"Welcome, Kushina-san." Sarutobi spoke. "I take it you got the summoning bird's message clearly enough?"

"Er, well. No... sir." Kushina added, awkwardly looking away. "Luckily Sae was around to tell me about it..."

The Sandaime Hokage blinked a bit but then slowly dipped his head into a couple of nods. "I see... I suppose we'll have to teach you about those birds, then."

"Yeah... That's what Sae said.. sir.." Kushina nodded a bit. Sarutobi wearily smiled, before he shifted his hands, moving one of this hands toward the bird. The bird halted its preening at this motion, folding its wing back to its side while black eyes stared at the Hokage's hand, before skinned feet hopped onto Sarutobi's hand.

"So are you ready to hear your first mission, Kushina-san?" Sarutobi questioned. Kushina felt the nervous feeling return in her stomach and in her throat, so she swallowed a bit and fought not to tremble as she nodded.

"H.. Hai."

He dipped his head into a nod, before he got up from his seat, picking up a scroll from his desk as he did. He held his arm horizontally so the bird would remain perched on his arm, walking over to Kushina and handing her the scroll and then holding out the bird to her.

"What you'll be doing is delivering the scroll to Amegakure, but also allowing Kurotsume to follow you... You see, he hasn't been to Amegakure and the birds that do know the direction are off delivering scrolls to other countries..."

"So I'll have to show him the way..." Kushina nodded slowly as she finished the sentence. Sarutobi nodded in response. He held out the hand Kurotsume was perched on, Kushina gingerly holding out her own hand. Kurotsume cocked his head to the side a bit and stared at Kushina's opened arm, before he stretched his wings and quickly jumped onto her arm. The kunoichi refrained from backing away at the bird's large wingspan, and flinching a bit at how strong the bird's grip was. Slowing, Kushina pulled her arm closer to her shoulder, and Kurotsume hopped onto her shoulder, accepting the invitation. Beady black eyes stared over at Sarutobi questioningly.

"You will obey her orders." Sarutobi warned.

"Ano. Hokage-sama? What about food and such?" Kushina questioned, motioning over to the bird. "And do I have to leave right away?"

"No, leaving immediately isn't necessary." Sarutobi shook his head. "You can prepare whatever you may need. And as for Kurotsume, don't worry about him. He can survive without food the whole trip. They are trained to fly non-stop, after all."

Kushina nodded her head at this. She glimpsed down at the scroll for a moment, before looking over at the bird.

"You ready?"

Kurotsume looked at her when she spoke, eyes staring unblinking at her before his head dipped slightly. Kushina looked back over at Sarutobi, raising her hand to her forehead in a salute as she grinned slightly, the nervous feelings she had minutes earlier now vanquished.

"Then I'll be on my way, Hokage-sama. You won't be disappointed, datte'yo...!" She said as she turned around. She turned rather too quickly for Kurotsume, whom outstretched his wings a bit to remain balanced. Kushina growled a bit.

"Geez! Don't do that, 'tebayo...!!"

Kurotsume squawked a bit, ruffling his feathers at this as he folded his wings back down to his sides. Kushina made taunting face at this, but slowly left the room without breaking her gaze from Kurotsume's. Sarutobi chuckled softly to himself as he heard Kushina growls to the bird. He returned to his desk, shuffling through some slips of paper.

_Now whom shall I summon next...?_

"Oh, your first mission, Kushina-chan? Then I'd be glad to take care of your plants for you." Retsuya nodded slightly as she did, her gaze trailing over to Kurotsume for a few moments before shifting back to Kushina. Kushina grinned a bit in response, shifting the small waist bag that hung around her hips loosely.

"Ja.. Tell Sae that I'll be away for a while if she ever stops by, too, please." She requested. Retsuya smiled softly at this and dipped her head into a couple of more small nods.

"Hai, hai. Get along now. It's your first mission, after all." The landlady ushered, raising her hands a bit and motioning for the kunoichi to leave. Kushina's grin widened at this, nodding a few times and turning around, Kurotsume already having gotten used to the kunoichi's speed.

"Ja ne, Retsuya-san! Atodeni, 'tebayo!!" She called over her shoulder as she started running down the street. Kurotsume obviously wasn't used to being perched upon her shoulder as she ran, so he released his talons from her clothing and took flight, black eyes following her and the road ahead. Kushina slowed her pace to look up at the large bird.

"Oi, oi, you better follow me, dattebayo..!!" Kushina growled loudly enough. Kurotsume glanced down at her for a moment, acknowledging the order he was given. Kushina nodded, feeling a bit of pride swelling up within her, even though it was only a bird she was commanding. But it was a start for her. Kushina adverted her sight back to the street, eyes widened as she nearly ran into a too familiar blond ninja. She spun around him to avoid physical contact, much like Minato had did when they first encountered each other in the streets. Minato couldn't help but jump slightly at this, his arms holding a couple piles of books with scrolls balancing on top of it.

"K-Kushina-san... I didn't see you coming, gomenasai..." Minato apologized, blue eyes staring at her in surprise while his arms fought to keep the scrolls from rolling off the book pile. Kushina rose a brow a bit as she examined the blond.

"Maa, Blondy. Your face is kinda red... You should probably take a break or something, you know?" Kushina stated. Minato stiffened a bit upon the mention of his face being red, but he slowly nodded at this.

"Ah, hai..."

"Mmm. Ja." Kushina raised her hand in a wave, turning to leave. "I'll see you in a few days or maybe more, I guess, 'tebayo."

"Eh?" Minato turned a bit to watch her walk down the street. "You got assigned a mission?"

Kushina grinned at this, turning around and walking back wards down the street with her arms folded behind her head in a boyish demeanor. "Hehe. Got my first mission as a Chuunin before you did, Blondy! Now if you don't mind, I'll be leaving, dattebayo!!" Kushina's grin widened a bit before she spun around on her heels. The kunoichi then took off running down the street, Kurotsume's squawking causing Minato to glimpse up at him for a moment. The blond Chuunin couldn't help but exhale an inaudible sigh, watching her disappear down the street.

"... Maa... Be careful, Kushina-san..." He murmured, before he slowly turned back toward his original destination, balancing the books and scrolls as he made way.

After a few minutes of running, Kushina channeled a bit of her chakra into her feet so that she could go onto the roof of a building with just one jump. From the roof she looked around, searching for the gate to the village while Kurotsume circled in the air above her, awaiting for her to move so that he may follow. Kushina began to make way toward the large gates once she spotted them by traveling via roof to roof and chakra. Kurotsume loyally flew in the air above her. The kunoichi landed in the street in front of the large, opened gates within a couple of minutes. The guard sitting in the small booth glimpsed at her, before continuing to doze off.

"Leaving for a mission?" The shinobi guard questioned as Kushina walked past.

"Yup." Was Kushina's simple reply as she walked past the gates and onto the path that lead to the Hi no Kuni's large forest. Kushina paused for a moment as she looked herself over, making sure she had her supplies and such for the trip. She grinned with satisfaction, ever wondering why she was so nervous to begin with.

"Yosh! Ikuzou, Kurotsume!!" Kushina yelled up to the bird before she took off running into the forest.

Night was slowly approaching. Feet slowed to a much more steady pace, lungs heaving to inhale the air that covered the world. Kushina placed her hands on her knees and breathed deeply, her head beginning to feel light from how heavily she fought to regain breath. Wings flapped swiftly a few times to halt, Kurotsume's body tilting so that he may turn around to circle the air above the kunoichi. Some annoyance filled the bird, having to stop multiple times when carrier birds like himself had to fly nonstop. The bird merely regarded this and thought humans as inferior when it came to long-distance traveling, taking the moment to examine the territory with beady black eyes to memorize the direction he could possibly be flying in the future. The kunoichi tilted her head and red-hued brown eyes looked up wards, as if reading the irritated bird's mind. Sighing gruffly, Kushina reached into the small, tan weapon pouch that hung on her waist with her small bag, pulling out an even smaller white bag and taking one of the contents before stuffing it back into her weapon pouch. Kushina popped the small, round pill into her mouth and swallowed it, almost immediately feeling the energy being restored into her body.

"Gomen, Kurotsume." Kushina called up to the bird as she adjusted her bag. She shifted on her feet, before lowered into a small leg stretch. Feeling most of her chakra restored, Kushina darted forward into the forest once more, senses sharpened in case of any sudden ambushes or traps that could have been set.

How long has it been since she departed Konoha? Traveling practically nonstop while constantly on guard could dull your sense of time. It was nearly night time. How much nights has it been? At least two? Three including the one that was steadily approaching. She should arrive in the Ame Kuni at around noon the next day, if she kept traveling at this constant pace. Though the latest time of arrival would probably be late in the afternoon, probably even before dusk. She was only human after all. Rest was required.

_I can probably cheat and have Kurotsume deliver the scroll once we're nearby the village..._ Kushina thought to herself, ignoring the cooling climate. _He needs to learn his way to Ame, anyway... I can rest for a bit and wait for him... Yeah, that'll be good, 'tebayo..._

Kushina nodded, as if somewhat proud of coming up with the lazy plan.

Slowly, the cooling climate was beginning to get to her. Mist was hovering lightly above the ground and creating an ominous setting with the darkening sky. Kushina shuddered a bit as she slowed to a light run, looking up to see if she could spot the carrier bird. Since the sky was fading into night, the bird was rather hard to spot.

"Kurotsume?! Get down here, dattebayo...!!" Kushina called up into the sky as she continued forward. Moments later, Kurotsume came fluttering down and perched onto her arm, which she offered to the bird. "It's getting a bit hard to see, so do you think you can find the village from here? By this mist I'd say we're already in the Ame Kuni..." Kushina took the time to look around once more. "Birds can see during the night, I think..." Sighing, she shifted her arm in an order for the bird to get off.

Kurotsume outstretched his wings, hovering in the air above her.

"I'll go with you for now, but I might end up getting lost like this. So it's best if you go ahead to the village..." Kushina sighed at this, pulling the scroll from her waist bag and holding it out for the bird. Kurotsume landed on the scroll and shifted his toes so that he could properly grip onto the scroll. Once he felt that he had a good hold on it, Kurotsume flapped his wings deeply a few times before taking off into the air. Kushina could hear the flapping of his wings disappear, and with that she looked around then drew a kunai from her holster.

"Should probably make a fire... if it'll start, 'tebayo..."

"Oi, wake up."

"Nggh..." Kushina groaned and rolled over onto her side to ignore the voice, grumbling under her breath. The owner of the voice growled at this, walking around Kushina and throwing her leg back and forth in a swift kick. Her foot came in hard contact with Kushina's stomach, causing the kunoichi to grunt and gasp for air while curled up in a type of fetal position.

"Get up." The Kage Bunshin growled, folding her arms and glaring down at Kushina. The kunoichi groaned and forcefully sat up, one arm still resting on her stomach as she panted to regain the breath she lost. Kushina wearily got to her feet once her breathing rate returned to normal, facing her Bunshin grumpily.

"What? I told you to look out for Kurotsume, datte'yo."

"I am." The Bunshin merely replied with a simple shrug. "It's already mid-day. He hasn't returned."

Kushina blinked at this. Finally she noticed the scenery around her. It was indeed mid day, with their shadows hanging right below them. A light mist hovered above the ground thought it wasn't noticeably thick like the previous night. With this, Kushina looked up at the Bunshin with her eyes wide with concern.

"Where's...?"

"I found the village while you were sleeping.. It's a bit off from here, but it's not going anywhere." The Bunshin replied as she raised her arm to point in one direction. Kushina's brown-red gaze followed where the arm was pointing toward, before slowly turning to walk toward that direction. The Bunshin followed silently at this.

Leaves that died and fallen to the ground crunched beneath their feet, so the two shifted so their footsteps wouldn't be audible, just as shinobi should walk. The two carried on walking for some time now, being cautious and to wait and see if Kurotsume would return. The day slowly dragged on with no sign of the bird, and as they traveled further into the small country, dark clouds began to appear. A small sprinkle of rain came down at first, but as they walked on wards, the rain was now a steady pour. Kushina didn't seem to mind this one bit, having lived in a water-based country prior to joining Konoha. After a while, the Bunshin frowned and jogged a bit to catch up to Kushina, leaning over and whispering in her ear.

"Frankly, I'm disappointed, dattebayo. You haven't noticed yet, have you?"

Kushina looked over her should and at the Bunshin. "... What are you talking about?"

The Bunshin sighed at this. "We're being followed. It's been like that ever since it turned from a sprinkle to a regular rain."

Kushina's eyes narrowed at this, and she immediately spun around when the Bunshin disappeared in a _poof_ and a small cloud. Her eyes examined the soaked woods, which were less dense than the forest in the Hi no Kuni. Sharpening her hearing, Kushina turned around and silently moved forward again.

_Swish._

Kushina definitely heard the followers this time. Where were they?

This was their territory now. And Kushina was trapped. If she used any type of force, they could kill her in an instance with her bearing her Konoha hitai-ate. The only way out of this would be to calmly negotiate with them, she supposed...

"You can stop following me now... I'm not an enemy." Kushina said out loud as she slowed to a halt. To prove she was speak truthfully the kunoichi raised her opened hands to shoulder level, showing that she was bearing no weapons nor did she intend to reach for any. "I'm just here on a mission."

"... Then are you the one whom sent the carrier bird?"

Kushina couldn't help but tense slightly at this. The voice was muffled and rather hard to understand, especially with the rain coming down on the thin forest. But she managed to catch most of the sentence.

"Yes. Where is he?" Kushina questioned.

"Right here."

Kushina whipped around. The voice sounded so close... She spun around and saw a three-man cell of Ame ninja standing in a small row, the ninja in the center of the three holding out Kurotsume. Though... the condition of the carrier bird weren't good, it seemed. For one thing, he was on his back in the Ame ninja's hands, with his feathers messy and even a few missing. A couple of his talons also seemed to be in bad condition as well.

What happened?

"What did you guys do..?" Kushina growled as calmly as she could. She shifted her feet, but kept her hands visible to the Ame nin.

"Security in Amegakure is tight, unlike those of Konohagakure." The Ame-nin in the middle spoke. The breathing apparatus that covered the lower half of his face muffled his voice. "Normally anyone whom wishes to enter the village must give every information on what they intend to do and how long they play to stay..." He paused, taking Kurotsume in one hand and throwing him. Kushina immediately moved forward at this, holding her arms out to catch him. Instead, the carrier bird awakened at the unnatural flight and struggled to flap his wings to keep from falling. It was proven futile, for he still fell into the kunoichi's arms.

"I suppose security should tighten around the country's borders now." The Ame-nin stated, as if throwing Kurotsume never happened. "We got the scroll you were trying to deliver. Now leave the country."

Kushina frowned and glowered at them for a bit, shifting so that Kurotsume was in a more better position in her arms. Slowly, she turned around and walked away from the three Ame ninja. She could feel her gazes burning into her back, watching her, _demanding_ her to leave their country. She could still feel them watching her. As if their eyes were the raindrops themselves. Watching. Staring.

The kunoichi broke out into a run, suddenly not wanting to be in this drenched country. As she ran, the rain was slowly receding, but she kept looking over her shoulder every few yards.

Why was fear clutching at her stomach?

Could it be because Amegakure was hiding something? If their security was so tight, then something must be brewing. The question was if Amegakure was going to use this against other country. Another question is if there was even something at all, or if Kushina was just imagining this.

Nevertheless.

Kushina would report this to Sandaime Hokage-sama.

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **I'm sorry for the lack of updates. x.x But you know. Writer's block. School. My friend's birthday (Lawl, Icy. If you ever read this, happy early birthday, dattebayo.)  
I'll try to update more frequently as I can. c: Especially during the winter. I have like a month off starting somewhere in the middle of December. Woo. (Is it me or are the chapters getting shorter? Do you guys even like super long chapters?)

Anyways. Kushina's first mission. Exciting? Not for you guys 'cuz there's no action.  
But I'm sorry. I'm trying to stretch out this fanfiction to be as long as possible. Otherwise it would end at like chapter ten or something.  
So I'm open for ideas, you know. Scenarios, (mini?) plot ideas... And some songs, even.

c:  
I want mai reviews plz.


	5. To Be Loved

**

* * *

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Chapter V: To Be Loved

"Here you go, young man. The books you requested..." The librarian murmured quietly as he placed pile of books onto the desk, adding onto the many other opened and scattered books that were littering the table. Minato's blue eyes trailed up to the older librarian, before he dipped his head into a nod. He pulled his hands away from the book that was currently opened in front of him, leaning over the desk to reach for the book on top the new pile.

"Arigatou." He whispered, abiding by the rules of the library. The librarian scanned all the books and scrolls, before turning around to return to his desk. "I haven't seen a young man read that much since myself..." Minato could hear him mumble. The blond couldn't help but shrug at the librarian's reaction to all the reading. How many days had he been here? At least half a week, and pretty much during half the day?

Normally, Minato wouldn't even read this much. He would have much preferred going out and training. But with Jiraiya gone away on a mission, Minato didn't have anyone to train with, actually. So, he focused more of his time on studying so he could properly develop his jutsu. Heck, at this pace he could probably create even more dignified jutsus. For now he would study while Jiraiya was away, and return to the constant field work to experiment the jutsu development firsthand.

Though during all this, Minato's thoughts would eventually trail. At first, it was just curiosity as to when Jiraiya would be returning from his solo mission. But then it would eventually roll over to a certain red-headed kunoichi. Minato would always convince himself that he was just worried about the kunoichi being on her first Chuunin mission for Konoha. Though the repeating thoughts of Kushina were beginning to make him question even himself. With a sigh the blond Chuunin lowered his pen down next to the small vial of ink, leaning back in his chair with a tired, dragging sigh. For what seemed like several minutes to him, Minato sat in the chair while staring blankly at the opened scroll that had some notes jotted down.

"No... I couldn't..." He murmured to himself as he shook his head. _I just need to get outside... My brain is tired of studying and obviously wants me to go out and get some air..._ With a soft sigh Minato go to his feet, beginning to close the books and stacking them into a pile one by one. He then closed the scrolls and made them disappear in small, light _poof_'ing noises. Minato closed the vial of ink and collected that as well as the pen, simply slipping them into his weapon pouch.

Minato waved lightly to the librarian as he left the building, squinting his eyes to allow them to adjust to the change in lighting. Once they adjusted, the blond inhaled and exhaled deeply to clear his head.

"..." He felt somewhat better at this, although unwanted thoughts still swirled in his head. Minato shook his head and groaned a bit, immediately using a Shunshin to make way to the training grounds, convincing himself that if he trained enough, he'd be too exhausted to think. The blond immediately found himself in front of the gates of the training ground, a bit shocked that he traveled such distance in a short amount of time. It seemed as though he was one step closer to completing his jutsu. Minato couldn't help but grin at this, quickly jumping over the gates and making way towards those familiar three stumps. All he really needed to do now was do something with the speed... The blond had a type of alert-seal in mind by now, since he just surprised himself with his speed.

_A seal that only can be heard by the user of the jutsu... Or me. _Minato scratched his head as he unconsciously jumped onto one of the stumps, squatting down on top of it with his arms resting against his legs. Blue eyes were in deep concentration as he stared down blankly at the healthy-green grass. Courtesy of Kushina's Suiton jutsu. _Kushina-san..._

Minato blinked at this, before he groaned and shook his head. "No, no...! I need to focus...! Training..." He hopped down from the stump, only to discover that there was no sword bumping against his back as he landed. The blond couldn't help but yell out in frustration. Minato leaned back and flopped onto his back, deciding to lay there for a few moments to try and calm himself. He had to mentally hit himself over the head for this. He didn't intend on leaving the library early and to train.

The air felt as though it became still. No wind. No birds. Only the sound of the stream's currents were audible. Minato just continued to lay there, you could even say that he blacked out for about half a minute or so. Minato finally sat up at this with a small frown on his face.

_Jiraiya-sensei... Come back soon... I need something to focus on._ Minato grumbled silently to himself, before he finally pushed himself to his feet. The blond Chuunin sighed and shook his head. The least he could do was try and focus on training himself, while his white-haired sensei was away. Minato pulled a good amount of shuriken and kunai from his holster and weapon pouch, using the holes on the weapons and sliding them onto his fingers, before he disappeared in a swift shunshin.

The shuriken were released first, all of them being embedded into the bark of a tree in a fairly straight line going up wards. The kunais soon followed suit of the star-shaped weapons. Kunai knives aligned on both sides of the shuriken line.

Minato had a small frown on his face as he appeared back in sight, a couple of yards away from the target-tree. "I missed by a bit on a couple of them..." He murmured, quickly blurring out of sight and appearing again in front of the tree to regather his weapons. He held the shuriken in his hands lightly, running his fingers delicately along one of the edges of the weapon as he thought.

"Ite!" Minato flinched when he felt his skin slit lightly against the metal weapon. It wasn't deep enough for blood to be drawn, though. Minato stared at the small cut, before he exhaled a sigh as he returned the shuriken to his holster and weapon pouch, beginning to collect the kunais.

Perhaps it was best that he returned home for the day. It was clear he was rather off-course when Jiraiya wasn't around to guide him. Especially now since Kushina seemed to be engraved into his mind, it only made him stray further from the path. Minato shook slightly at this as he turned to walk out of the training grounds. After what seemed like several minutes of traveling, but really just a few moments, Minato growled a bit and decided to use a Shunshin the rest of the way home.

If it weren't for the fact that Kushina currently plagued his mind, Minato would've been impressed that he made it to his house in a single Shunshin. In a rather hasty manner he pushed the door open and slammed it shut behind him. Though it didn't close completely, so he whirled around and kicked it shut.

"Tadaima..!!" Minato yelled, hearing his own voice echoing through out the two-storied house. No reply came in response to either the call nor the slamming door, so Minato just went up the stairs to his room. He took the empty house as an opportunity, slamming his bedroom door loudly and flopping onto his single-person bed. Minato buried his face into his ebony pillow, clutched the sides of it and just yelled at the top of his lungs, to the point where his throat demanded that he stopped. At that, Minato's body went limp for a bit as he rested his throat, laying there with his body and mind now calmed.

"What, you're that bored without me?"

Minato's head immediately rose and looked over at the window before his eyes, refraining himself from instinctively throwing a barrage of shuriken at that direction. Jiraiya squatted on the sill so that he could fit in the window, a brow risen as he rested his arms against his thighs. Minato's blue eyes brightened at the sight of his white-haired sensei.

"Sensei-!" The blond blinked a bit when his voice was raspy and cracked a bit. Jiraiya couldn't stifle the snicker that escaped him.

"Go get some water, I'll wait." The Jounin stated as he climbed into the room, leaning against the wall and making sure he didn't touch any of the furniture that surrounded him. Minato nodded in obedience as he slid out of his bed, immediately disappearing in a blur. Minato reappeared sitting cross-legged a moment later, a glass of water in hand as he looked over at his sensei. Jiraiya looked a bit dumbfounded.

"Whoa.. Did you just...?"

Minato tilted his head to one side like some manga character. "What? Get a glass of water? You told me to." The blond replied, his voice no longer rasped which indicated he had most likely drank some water on the way back. Jiraiya scratched his head with his gloved hand, before he shook his head.

"You've gotten a lot faster. Kinda took me by surprise. Though I'm sure I wasn't away for that long..."

"When did you come back?"

"Just a couple of minutes ago." Jiraiya motioned towards the window. "I was walking by and heard you yell- oh and you scream like a girl by the way -so I made Orochimaru and Tsunade-hime go ahead and report to Sandaime-sama."

Minato's eye twitched at the girly-scream comment. "..."

Jiraiya smirked at this, folding his arms without budging from where he leaned against the wall. "I'm just kidding, Minato-_chan_, but honestly. You're so bored without me that you're willing to just scream into your pillow?" The white-haired Jounin questioned. His brow rose unconsciously at this, remembering the thought of him walking down the street only to hear a slightly-muffled yell. Minato downed the rest of the water in a couple of big gulps and balanced the glass on his knee, before returning his attention back to Jiraiya.

"..." Minato rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly with his hand. "Well.. I've just been... distracted.. sensei." Minato murmured. Jiraiya's black eyes stared at Minato for a moment.

"By...?"

Jiraiya blinked and approached Minato, lowering the upper half of his body down in front of Minato to stare at the blond's face. Red.

"Ohhh!!" Jiraiya straightened himself, immediately jabbing a finger at Minato, halting just barely a centimeter before he could touch the Chuunin's forehead. "You like someone!!"

Minato lowered his head between his shoulders in embarrassment, shifting his gaze away as to not see Jiraiya's expression. "Don't tell anyone... Especially 'tou-san and okaa-san... And her."

"But you'll tell me, right?" Jiraiya questioned. In an immature way, he lowered onto his knees, placing his hands on the bed to peer up at Minato. "Who do you like?"

Minato could feel his face reddening at the questions, so he kept his blue eyes glued to his sword on the other side of the room to avoid Jiraiya's questioning gaze. The toad-summoning Jounin frowned a bit, placing his hand to his chin as he thought carefully.

"Hmm... So you want me to guess, then? This'll be challenging.. What girls do you hang out with..?" Jiraiya murmured to himself as he brainstormed. "It can't be that Yamanaka girl... She's out of your league, and she has to marry in her own clan anyway... So that pretty much crosses out Hyuugas, Uchihas, Inuzukas, and Aburames... Naras... Geez..." Jiraiya grumbled as he ran his gloved hand through his spiked white hair. "This is challenging... It can't be Kuria, she's more of a sister to you and she likes someone else anyway..."

Jiraiya sat on the floor with his hand still at his chin, his other arm resting over his stomach as he entered into a deep thinking mode. Minato's gaze slowly trailed back to Jiraiya for a moment, noticing the clear expression of concentration on his sensei's face. Slowly, the blond saw Jiraiya open his eyes.

Jiraiya looked over at Minato slowly, dramatically. He slowly got up, his current emotion being surprise.

"Aaaaah!!" Jiraiya yelled, yet still sounded a bit calm as he did that. He raised his index finger to Minato's forehead.

"It's that Uzu kunoichi, isn't it?!"

Oh, Minato's face was definitely red now.

"I knew it!!" Jiraiya's voice volume was heightening. "It was so obvious-"

"It took you a couple of minutes!!" Minato retaliated by raising his own voice. Out of embarrassment and maybe some slight anger, Minato flung the glass cup at Jiraiya, whom easily caught it without so much as flinching or blinking. Jiraiya still held his finger at the blond.

"So?! You like her! That's so cute!!"

Minato nearly fell off his bed at this response. _Cute?_

"Eeeheehee!!" Jiraiya flailed around like some immature teen-aged girl. "I should tell Tsunade-hime!!"

"What?!" Minato slammed his hands against the small area of his bed, but since the surface was soft it didn't make much noise. "Why?! Tsunade-san is...!"

"Scary? I would know..." Jiraiya shivered and instinctively placed a hand to his chest, remembering the time when Tsunade nearly broke all his ribs for a small comment he made towards her. "But why can't I tell her?"

"B-Because!" Minato was obviously flustered by his sensei's behavior as to stutter. Jiraiya tried to hold a straight face, but laughed and pinched Minato's cheek.

"Aww!!"

"Sensei... stop..." Minato mumbled. There was a slight stinging sensation from where his cheek was being pinched. Jiraiya continued this teasing for another few moments, before finally releasing the blond's face.

"Haa... I'm sorry, I'm sorry. But your first crush, that's cute, Minato." Jiraiya grinned. But Minato rubbed his cheek and lowered his head.

"But it's been distracting me, sensei... I couldn't really focus at all when you left..."

Jiraiya couldn't help but raise a brow at this. "You couldn't focus? You got alot faster since before I left, Minato..."

"I know... but I still couldn't focus.. I even tried to study so I could properly develop my jutsu... But..."

"Aww... Minato-chan's in love!!"

Minato sputtered. "L-Love?! That's ridiculous, sensei!! I don't _love_ her.."

Jiraiya raised a finger and swung it around in the air. "That's what they all say. But you said you couldn't focus at all, right? Seems like you love her, if you ask me."

Minato's face was scarlet at this point. "It's only been a short amount of time...! _Love_ is too strong a word!"

"I don't know, Minato..." Jiraiya lowered down onto the ground, sitting cross-legged and resting his head in his palm. "Crushes are if you like them and think about them... Love is where you feel you can't be without them and can't get them out of your mind, no matter how much you try."

The corner of Minato's mouth twitched, placing his hands by his feet as he stared down at his ebony bedsheets. "..."

Jiraiya didn't like the heavy silence that filled the air. He got up with a small grunt, leaning back wards to stretch his back a bit. "Come on. I'll take you to the training grounds. Even though I'm dead tired and just got back from a mission, I'll train you for a bit, okay?"

The Chuunin's eyes lit up at this, flashing his known grin and disappearing from here he sat.

"You're slow, sensei!!" Jiraiya heard from downstairs. The white-haired Jounin sighed, spinning around on his heels and rubbing the back of his neck. "_You_'re just _fast_." He growled in response as he headed down the stairs. Minato grinned from the bottom of the staircases with his weighted sword slung across his back. As soon as he spotted his sensei, Minato turned around and darted out of the door.

"Uwah!!"

Jiraiya raised a brow in confusion at the yell, quickening his pace and pulling the door open. As soon as he stepped out into the sunlight, he got a fist to the face.

"Ite!!"

"Ditch me why don't you?! I had to report to Hokage-sama alone with Orochimaru!" Tsunade hissed the last sentence. She pulled back her hand from Jiraiya's face, which was still balled into a fist. In her other hand, she held Minato by the collar of his shirt, lifting him an inch or so off the ground. Jiraiya placed a hand on the door frame of Minato's house while his free hand covered his sore face.

"What's wrong with being alone with Orochimaru?" Jiraiya mumbled without removing his hand.

"You know very well that even though we're childhood friends, I always get the chills around him." Tsunade hissed.

"Yeah yeah... The slug is afraid of the snake, the snake is scared of the frog, and the frog's scared of the slug. It's just one big circle of fear. Though frankly I'm not sure if Orochimaru is scared of me or not." Jiraiya murmured. "I'm definitely scared of you, that's for sure."

Tsunade was tempted to punch Jiraiya again, but instead took it out on Minato by throwing the poor blond. The Chuunin reacted quickly and quickly used a Shunshin to disappear before he hit the ground. Tsunade scowled at this, looking back at Jiraiya.

"Since when did he get so fast?"

"While we were gone..." Jiraiya murmured. He shook his head and groaned a bit, before he shifted to close the house door behind him. Jiraiya blinked slightly, before a small smirk crossed his face.

"Ne, Tsunade-hime.."

"What is it?" Tsunade growled, shifting to place her hands on her hips.

"Did you know Minato likes someone?"

"Chibi likes someone?" Tsunade glimpsed around the street and clearly noted that he hadn't appeared ever since she threw him. "Who?"

"Have you seen that Uzu kunoichi?" Jiraiya questioned as he stepped forward, moving past Tsunade and heading down the street. Tsunade, as Jiraiya predicted, followed.

"No.. But Hokage-sama's told me about her. He was wondering if it were possible for me to teach her some medic stuff." The pony-tailed blond shrugged slightly as she walked alongside Jiraiya. Jiraiya tousled his white hair a bit, doubting that a tomboy like Kushina would want to learn something like that.

"So you haven't seen her..."

"That's who Chibi likes?"

"You should have figured that out the moment I brought her up." Jiraiya grinned. "But she's a tomboy. Like you were."

"A tomboy, eh..." Tsunade moved her hands from her hips to fold them across her chest. The medic kunoichi stifled a small shrug. She could clearly remember when their team first started out. Oh, she was a tomboy alright. Her hair either short or up in a ponytail, dressing like a guy half the time. Even talking and acting like one. Of course Tsunade got teased by Jiraiya often by that, and she was beginning to develop as a woman anyway, so she stopped the tomboy thing. Well, except for the gambling. She never gave up on that. "She'll get over it. Once she grows older, she'll look pretty... Of course, I haven't even seen her yet..." Tsunade shrugged once more.

Jiraiya mimicked her shrug. "We'll see... Kind of short red hair... Talks exactly like a boy... You should meet her some day.. Your guys' personalties are rather similar."

Tsunade shot him a small glare. "Are you saying I'm still like a guy?"

"Well, sort of." This time Jiraiya was prepared, ducking under a punch and lurching forward in a swift Shunshin. "Well, I'm going to train Minato. If you follow, we're not afraid to run." He grinned, before blurring off in the direction of the training grounds.

"Jiraiya, you ass!" Tsunade yelled in response. She huffed, but spun around. _Might as well head to the hospital to see if they need my help..._

* * *

"C'mon, you're killing me, Minato. What do you want to work on?" Jiraiya questioned for the fifth time since he arrived upon the training grounds. He lazily sat on one of the wooden stumps while drumming his fingers against his knee. Minato was being rather indecisive, or modest- Jiraiya wasn't able to tell. It was as if the blond couldn't decide which to work on first.

"... Fine... Let's work on developing your jutsu." Jiraiya stifled a small sigh. "I still need to know the basics of it... High-speed teleportation, right? You already got the speed... Teleportation is rather complicated, you know." Jiraiya rose a brow. The corner of Minato's mouth twitched.

"But then that would be a basic Shunshin jutsu, sensei."

The toad-summoner groaned and ran his fingers through his hair. "Fine, fine.. I'll actually think this through."

With that, Jiraiya fell silent. Inaudibly, he drummed his fingers against his head, which was tilted forward to think a bit. Minato shifted slightly with discomfort. It was rather unnerving; The wind wasn't so much as blowing, and only the small stream's currents were audible, really. He pulled his sword off his back, fingering at the handle to try and occupy his mind so that it wouldn't drift in this silence. The effort was proven to be rather futile, his mind drifting off to Kushina anyway. Minato threw back his head a bit and exhaled a frustrated groan.

"Thinkin' about _her_?" Jiraiya questioned without so much as moving or opening his eyes.

"I'm trying not to..."

"Well I'll help you out. How about a type of seal? A teleporation would be a hassle, and you'd probably travel faster than it could.. "summon" you." Jiraiya opened his eyes, but kept slouching as he lowered his arms onto his thighs. "A seal that... mmm... "Alerts" you of where to Shunshin to."

Minato sighed slightly. "I was thinking of something like that. I think my idea was a bit different, but I can't remember..."

"Yeah." Jiraiya rubbed his chin and trailed his gaze away. "Like.. only _you_ can hear it, so enemies wouldn't be able to know what's coming..." Jiraiya grinned at this and turned his head back in the direction of the blond. "Yeah. I like the sound of that..."

Minato scratched his head a bit in confusion. "I suppose... I'm not sure how I'll be able to make it so only _I_ can hear it..."

"Don't worry about that... I'll try figure that out with Hokage-sama's help. Maybe a couple of Uchihas as well. But for now, just focus on speed... and strength of course." Minato nodded in response, grinning a bit.

"Arigatou, sensei."

"Now come on.. Since you don't seem to like thinking about her so much, we'll spar a bit."

"Hai!!"

Metal clashed with one another, releasing sparks off into the air only for them to disappear before they would so much as come close to the ground. Clothes fluttered from the wind and speed of the strikes, and another set of sparks were set off. Blue met black, but the meeting was brief as the owners spun around and disappeared into the towering trees again. Their movement caused some of the smaller, weaker branches of the trees to snap, causing the leaves to flutter in the air. In an instant those leaves were slit cleanly in half, the pieces being blown aside by the shinobis' swift movements. One of them was visible for an instant, but he immediately disappeared as soon as he came, a long line of weapons following where he once stood and protruded the bark of the tree. More weapons were flung at each other, furthering the creation of sparks and the screech of metal scraping.

The sky was slowly beginning to darken, and much too early, Jiraiya noted. All around them the once-visible shadows were disappearing, indicating the disappearance of the sunlight.

Minato halted on a thick branch to stare at his white-haired sensei a few yards away, his shoulders rising and falling in small, sharp movements. Jiraiya placed a hand on the trunk of the tree he was standing in, his black eyes trailing to one of the small openings in the tree to gaze out at the sky. Dark clouds were rolling in over the direction of the village. Some rumbling was heard kilometers away.

"Looks like we're going to have a storm.. I can't tell how big it is from where we're standing, though." Jiraiya spoke. His voice rasped slightly due to thirst from the high-speed sparring. He returned his gaze back to his former student.

"Should we head back?"

Minato was rather hesitant to reply at first, but slowly dipped his head into a few small nods. "Hai..."

"Aah." Jiraiya nodded in response, quickly jumping down from the branch and using Shunshin to head for the large clearing. Minato followed suit, quickly catching up to him in a heartbeat. Jiraiya was standing upon one of the stumps, squinting in the direction of the village. Of course, the entire village wasn't visible from where they were, but some of the taller buildings could be spotted over the trees.

Grey clouds were already stretching over the training grounds, though it seemed as though the village would be receiving most of the storm. As usual.

"We might get some rain on the way back."

Almost as soon as Jiraiya finished that sentence, a few drops began falling from the clouds above them. The teacher and student tilted their head up wards to gaze at the sky for a moment, then looking at each other before they could get any rain drops in their eyes.

"We should head back, unless you want to catch a cold..."

"No way, I don't want to be stuck home all day, sensei."

Jiraiya snickered a bit. "Yeah... Otherwise you'll have to sit there... _thinking_ for the whole day." He sneered. Minato groaned.

"Did you _have_ to bring that up, sensei?! I don't want to think, desu kedou..." Minato muttered. He sighed and slung the rope of his sword over his shoulder, beginning to walk towards the village.

"Yet you walk. It's probably raining in the village by now." Jiraiya shook his head to rid his hair of the small droplets, before jumping off the stump and following him. Minato stifled a shrug. "If it comes down harder, I can Shunshin the rest of the way home."

Jiraiya rolled his eyes. "So maybe you're just a bit faster than me now, big deal. I'm still way stronger than you. I _am_ of the Densetsu no Sannin, after all."

"It's just a name, sensei." Minato rolled his own eyes at his sensei's smug moment. "From what we were doing today, you don't seem to be very "legendary".."

"Hey, you're just angry because I keep teasing you about her." Jiraiya stuck out his tongue, placing a finger on Minato's head and easily spinning it around lightly without so much as using a fragment of his energy. Minato grumbled a bit.

"I thought the point of training today was to get me to focus on something other than Kushina-san..." He grumbled. Jiraiya shrugged and rolled his eyes. It was still just a drizzle, though the pace of the rain was beginning to quicken.

"Oh come on Minato. It's your first love. The more you try to avoid it the more it'll hurt. Ohh, it'll just keep coming back and back to hit you."

"That... sounds rather horrible, sensei..." Minato flinched.

"Ohh, love can be a double-edged sword, 'Nato." Jiraiya raised his finger again, clearly growing accustomed to the rain. "It can be one of the best feelings in the world, or it can be one of the worst. There are only a few ways to deal or get rid of it."

Minato shuddered at the way Jiraiya was talking. It was as if he were talking more of deadly sickness rather than a feeling. Jiraiya carried on speaking, ignoring Minato's discomfort.

"You can either get over it and move onto another person... Not deal with it at all and just live with the sadness of not being able to have them your whole life... be rejected and commit suicide- which I suggest you don't try... and..."

The corner of Minato's mouth twitched at this. "And...?"

Jiraiya turned to look at Minato, and grinned slightly. "Or chance it- maybe they'll like you back. You'll both be happy, and you'll have someone to fight for and to protect."

Minato stared at his white-haired sensei through the light haze the rain created. He shook his head, raising his hand to run some of the droplets off his head. Jiraiya glimpsed up at the sky, before beginning to quicken his pace.

"Come on.. We're bound to catch a cold at this rate."

"Aah.." Minato nodded at this, picking up speed before eventually moving forward in a quick shunshin, feeling his sensei's own chakra following along side. Minato sighed lightly as Jiraiya's words echoed in his head.

_Someone to fight for and to protect..._

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **Tadaima means like, "I'm home". (And normally the person home would replay "Okaeri", which means like "welcome home". c: Just so none of you are confused.)  
Maaaa... You can tell the parts where I got lazy, can't you? But I'm rather proud of myself... I pretty much typed half of this chapter today. Mainly because my Internet was down for about four hours and I had nothing to do... -sweatdrop-

Thank you guys for the positive reviews! And all the new watchers as well...! c:

Winter vacation is coming up for me, so I'll try and update more frequently within the month.  
(Also, please ignore any spelling or grammar errors... Sometimes the spell-check on fanfiction(dot)net doesn't always work well, so.. Please excuse any.. e.e;)


	6. Into The Ocean

**Chapter VI: Into The Ocean**

Clouds were slowly drifting over the entire hidden village, bringing rain down upon it. The streets were empty when it began a steady pour, water pooling into mud puddles in the dirt ground. A light, thin mist hovered above the ground from the rain, a detail much too familiar to Kushina. She just walked through the middle of the streets, her hair flattened thanks to the falling liquid. Her clothing was also soaked and sticking to her skin. Kushina didn't mind being soaked at all, she came from a country that was water-based, after all. You'd be the odd one if you stayed inside during rain. Kushina stifled a sigh at the memory of her old country, forcing it to the back of her mind and letting her red-brown eyes flicker down wards at her arms. Kurotsume was still resting in one of her arms, currently unconscious and looking rather cold. The Uzu kunoichi had been using her free hand to try and keep the rain from hitting him, though it had been rather unsuccessful half the time. Kushina sighed. But at least she was back in the village and not in the Ame no Kuni anymore. Remembering Kurotsume's condition, Kushina picked up her pace into bigger strides and soon found herself in front of the Hokage Tower.

Kurotsume shifted when he no longer felt rain falling on his body, shifting a bit. He wildly flapped his wings, causing Kushina to jump back and drop him. Kurotsume stretched his wings in time, landing on the ground lightly. He shivered a bit, as if to get rid of the water, before he flapped his wings and flew up wards, skimming the edge of the red walls before diving into a higher window. Kushina watched this for a bit, before slowly beginning to climb set of stairs. Before she entered the building, she wrung out her shirt a bit as well as the edges of her pants. Sighing, she gathered most of her hair and twisted it to get the water out. She'd still drip water into the building, but it would do. It was better making puddles with every step she took.

Kushina opened the door and closed it behind her, trailing around the building in search of the Hokage's office. She knocked on the door to the office and politely waited for a response, which came moments after the last knock. The kunoichi flicked her hand a few times to get rid of the water droplets before she reached for the door, turning the knob with some difficulty. Kushina entered the room, surely spotting Kurotsume resting tiredly on the edge of the Sandaime Hokage's desk.

"Welcome back, Kushina-san. Did everything go well?" Sarutobi's gaze trailed over to Kurotsume. His feathers were still messy and rather out of place. Kurotsume was fixing that problem now, his left wing outstretched to clean his flank.

"There were... some problems, sir." Kushina was rather hesitant to tell him this. It was her first mission in Konoha, after all. "Ame's grown rather... protective, Hokage-sama..."

Sarutobi rose a brow, eyes fixated on her in interest. "Do tell..."

"Well... They said their securities have tightened, 'tebayo... The scroll was delivered, but they were being so cautious that they attacked Kurotsume and gave him back.. Then told me to leave the country." Kushina murmured as she recalled the memory. Sarutobi remained silent as she explained, hands folded on his desk while his eyes trailed down wards to the desk as he thought.

"... I see." Sarutobi nodded at this, before looking up at her. "Thank you, Kushina-san. Congratulations on completing your first mission in Konoha."

Kushina couldn't help but beam slightly at this, before her pride slowly faded away. "What about Ame, 'tebayo?"

Sarutobi stifled a shrug. "We can't go around accusing other nations, can we? Something could have happened that made them more cautious. Someone could have infiltrated the village so their securities have tightened. Who knows? But we mustn't nose our way in, Kushina-san."

The former Uzu kunoichi lowered her head shamefully. "Hai..."

Sarutobi only nodded slightly. "Go home and get some rest, Kushina-san. Dry yourself off before you catch a cold. Otherwise you won't be able to go on more missions for a while." Sarutobi smiled lightly. Kushina sheepishly rubbed the back of her neck.

"I'm quite used to getting wet. But alright. Since you're Hokage." Kushina lowered into a bow, and realized how much water she had dripped onto the floor. She lifted her head, smiling meekly. "Etou.. Sorry about the water."

"It's quite fine. I'll just see who slips and falls." Sarutobi chuckled a bit. Kushina laughed wearily, but turned around to leave. As she was about to place her hand on the doorknob, it turned and opened for her. She stepped back a bit, having to practically look straight up to see the white-haired toad-summoner.

Jiraiya rose a brow as he looked down at the kunoichi. "Oh. Kushina." He tried not to smirk, but Kushina barely noticed.

"Oh, hey old man." Jiraiya frowned at this comment. He growled a bit but held the door open for her. Kushina just muttered a thanks and passed through the door under his arm, trailing down the hall and leaving some more small puddles on the floor. Jiraiya stifled a few snickers, closing the door and turning to face his former sensei. He looked down when he felt his foot close to slipping, scowling a bit.

"She dripped that puddle, didn't she?"

"You're hardly the one to talk, Jiraiya." Sarutobi only stated, his hands still folded on his desk. Jiraiya rolled his eyes.

"What do you want?" Sarutobi questioned. "I missed you when Orochimaru and Tsunade reported the mission."

"Oh. Training Minato. Helping him out." Jiraiya grinned a bit. Sarutobi rose a brow at his former student's expression. The look was rather familiar to the Sandaime Hokage, yet he couldn't quite make out what Jiraiya was thinking. So he dared question.

"What is it?"

"You want to do me a favor, sensei? Well, it's actually more of a favor for Minato." Jiraiya didn't even bother to fix the fact that he called Sarutobi "sensei". It was small habit that come at him from time to time.

"For Minato?"

"Aah." Jiraiya nodded as he approached the desk, looking down at his sensei with his arms folded. Sarutobi frowned a bit, pulling some of the paperwork back to keep water from dripping on them. Once he saved the files and stored them in a drawer, he looked up at Jiraiya and waited for the explanation.

"So you see... 'Nato's got a thing for Kushina-"

"Does he?" Sarutobi questioned, surprise clearly hinted in his voice. Jiraiya grinned. "Cute, ain't it? So I want you to.. y'know. Assign them a mission."

Sarutobi kept his arms folded, though he shifted so they were folded in front of his mouth like some kind of shield. "Together? They're just two Chuunin, Jiraiya. They'll need a third member or a Jounin for any of the platoon missions."

Jiraiya stifled a groan. "Fine, then assign a mission to me and I'll lead them."

"You just got back from a mission. I'll find someone else and a decent mission. Nothing life-threatening but a mission, nevertheless."

The Gama-Sennin grinned widely. "Great."

Sarutobi shook his head, a weary sigh rolling off his tongue. "We're horrible, meddling like this." He said, though he chuckled. Jiraiya shrugged a bit. "Minato's in the denial stage at the moment. We just need to give him a shove and have him go for it, you know?"

Sarutobi dipped his head into a nod. "I suppose." He paused for a moment. The sound of Jiraiya's hair dripping and the rain outside were the only audible things at the moment. "Though we should just let him go at his own pace, Jiraiya."

The student of the two shook his head. "Do you know how long that's going to take? Minato can be pretty shy, and frankly he's pretty flustered from all this. He's new to it, you know?"

Sarutobi nodded in response. He sighed a bit, but agreed. "Alright. I'll see what I can find. Though the best I could probably get is an escort mission. Nothing major."

"That's perfectly fine." Jiraiya grinned at the thought. "Hehe.. I wonder what Minato's gonna say when he finds out." He looked back down at his former sensei. Sarutobi's gaze was over at the bird when Jiraiya was looking, watching the bird before Sarutobi shifted his sight back to the taller man. The Sandaime could only wonder what Minato's reaction would be to the mission. Though he would find out when he was to assign the mission. If he could find one. Sarutobi stifled a sigh, raising his hand to motion for Jiraiya to leave while his free hand moved to retrieve the documents from the drawer. Jiraiya got the message and nodded, turning around silently and making way towards the door. The Gama Sennin trailed out of the office and slowly pushed the door closed behind him until he heard the click that indicated the door shutting completely. As he headed toward the exit of the building, he was able to heard how hard the rain was coming down.

He slipped his hands into his pockets and stepped out into the rain, standing there for a moment and gazing up at the sky. ..._"It always rains here, and I hate it. It's like the whole country's a crybaby. I'm gonna change it... and protect everyone!".._

The young boy's voice echoed in his head for a moment, before he shook his head and began walking forward and into the empty streets.

There was a small bounce in Kushina's step as she walked back to the apartment, clearly enjoying the rain that came down upon the dry village. It rained almost every day back in Uzu, so the villagers had to grow use to it at some point, right? The kunoichi finally spotted the building she was residing in and ran the rest of the way to duck underneath the roof. She started the process of wringing out part of her clothing as well as her hair, before she moved to approach the stairs that led to the second floor. Kushina glimpsed at the door which was the entrance to Retsuya's apartment, and couldn't help but notice the delicious aroma that wafted through the small window next to the door. The aroma was a switch, and the former Uzu kunoichi then realized how hungry she was. Her stomach growled in demand of food.

Kushina sighed at this and began to climb the stairs. She thought she heard a door open, but she ignored it.

"Kushina-chan?"

She had to stop and look back down the stairs at that. Retsuya was standing by her opened door, holding onto the doorknob.

"My goodness, Kushina-chan... You're soaked to the bone..!"

Kushina wearily chuckled. "I'm quite used to it, Retsuya-san dattebayo."

"Well, be sure to get out of those wet clothes quickly." Retsuya warned, but smiled lightly. "Did you just get back from your mission?" Kushina nodded, and Retsuya mimicked this. "Alright.. I took care of your plants like you asked me to."

The kunoichi grinned a this. "Arigatou!" She said, before turning around and skipping the last couple of steps onto the second floor. Kushina dug through her pockets the best she could, having some difficulty since the clothing clung to her skin. After a bit she yanked the key out of her pocket, sliding it into the lock and then opening the door. Kushina quickly pulled her zori off then shot into the bathroom, not wanting to create puddles she would have to mop up later. The kunoichi trailed over to the shower and turned the knob, allowing the water to run until some warmth would fill the bath. While the water ran, Kushina slipped off her shuriken holster, weapon pouch and hitai-ate, placing them on the sill below the mirror. She peeled off her clothing with some difficulty since it stuck to her skin, but slipped into the filled tub after she did.

Kushina could feel her muscles slowly relaxing in the heated water. She unwounded and exhaled a deep sigh, sinking into the water so the lower half of her face was beneath the surface. Brown-red eyes closed a bit, staring blankly at the surface of the water as it rippled with every breath she took. It felt nice to be able to bathe in warm water like this, especially after a long journey from and to Konoha, and being soaked by rain. Kushina sunk in deeper to get her hair soaked in the warm water, before she held her breath and dunked her head underneath. She resurfaced moments later, allowing her hair to fall to her shoulders slightly. The kunoichi unwounded once more, leaning back against the tub with the water up to her chin this time.

"Haa..."

The red-haired kunoichi lied in the water for a few minutes, before she shook her head and stood up, reaching for the towel that was folded on the rack not too far away. Kushina wrapped the towel around herself and stepped out of the tub, pulling some water out and creating puddles on the floor. She didn't bother clean it it up, only reaching to drain the water. Kushina kept the towel securely wrapped so she wouldn't have to hold it up, picking up her wet clothing and pulling them apart before she left them out to dry on the edge of the tub. Kushina glimpsed at her ninja gear, shrugged, then left the bathroom to find some new clothes to sleep in for the night. She trailed over to the small drawer and pulled it open, pulling out some of the baggy clothing that Retsuya had provided. She silently slipped the clothing on and hung the towel over her head to dry her hair, before she loped over to the refrigerator to see what she could vulture on.

Kushina pulled open the door, blinking in surprise when she saw a shelf filled with plastic containers that held all kinds of food. She gingerly reached in and took one out since it had a small slip of paper on it, taking the small note and reading it.

'_Congratulations on your first mission, Kushina-chan. Kami-sama knows how hungry you must be. And only with a few cup of ramen in the room, you're bound to starve and loose energy. Enjoy!_'

Kushina continued to stare at the note, before she crumpled it and took out the food, placing it on the table and closing the door. Kushina trailed to the door and opened it, going out barefoot and going down the damp stairs. She jumped the rest of the way and quickly approached Retsuya's door, knocking on it urgently a few times. The kunoichi could hear a few murmurs as well as a chuckle, before the door opened. Kushina was already lowered into a deep bow when Retsuya answered the door.

"Thank you so much, Retsuya-san...!" Kushina spoke over the rain. Retsuya just smiled lightly, the lines around her mouth increasing in size.

"It's not a problem, Kushina-chan... You can't starve yourself when you've only arrived." Retsuya murmured. She continued to smile. "Now go back inside, Kushina-chan... You'll catch a cold if that's all you're wearing."

Kushina nodded and rose from her bow. She quickly turned around and darted up the stairs, remembering that there was food waiting for her to devour.

Minato was woken up the next morning by a beak tapping against the glass of his window. It took the small summoning bird a few large taps as well as a few flutters of its wings before Minato dragged himself out of the bed and opened the window. The bird flitted in and chirped the commands to the blond, flying around the room for a bit before he dove out the exit and disappeared out of sight. Minato was still a bit drowsy, but remembered what the bird was summoning him for and grinned sheepishly. He sloppily made his bed and ran out of his room to wash his face and brush his teeth quickly in the bathroom, returning to his own room and throwing on some proper clothes. Minato stopped to neatly tie on his hitai-ate, brushing his bangs a bit so they covered a bit of the metal place on the headband. He examined himself in the small mirror for a moment, grinning before he strapped his shuriken holster onto his right thigh and grabbed his weapon pouch. He finally took his weighted sword and slung it across his back, before Minato darted out of the room and shot down the stairs.

"Going somewhere?" Minato could hear his mother call just before he ran out the door. The blond sighed lightly and walked back wards to the entrance of the kitchen.

"I've been summoned for a mission, okaa-san." Minato murmured. He looked at his mother's back, her hands moving to wash the dishes that had been sitting in the sink since the previous night. Her hitai-ate was set aside on the counter for more comfort.

"Is that so? Be careful, then." She said without glancing over her shoulder. Minato wearily stared at her back, frowning slightly before he turned and left the house. The moment he closed the door behind him, the enthusiasm filled him once more. Minato grinned and walked down the streets in the direction of the large red tower. As he walked, his pace quickened, before it came to the point where it was a swift Shunshin across the village. He skidded to a halt in front of the set of stairs that led inside the building. Impatience flooded him in that instant and he disappeared from where he stood, appearing in sight once more at the top of stairs.

Minato entered the building and rushed to the Hokage's Office, but remembered his place and halted in front of the door then raising his hand to knock on the door with his knuckles. He patiently waited for a response, and the door opened in replacement to the usual "Enter" that came from the room. Minato blinked in surprise, tilting his head slightly to look up at the charcoal-haired shinobi whom answered the door. The way his bangs were parted and the small frown lines that were on his cheeks, Minato recognized him immediately.

"Ah... Fugaku-san..." The blond Chuunin bowed slightly in a greeting. The Uchiha returned the small bow with a nod of his head.

"Namikaze.. Congratulations on becoming a Chuunin." Fugaku added. Minato grinned a bit and nodded. "Arigatou..."

Fugaku returned the same nod, before opening the door wider and stepping aside to allow Minato inside. Sarutobi greeted him with a nod as well.

"Good to see you could make it, Minato." Sarutobi said from behind his folded hands. "We're just waiting for the other two to arrive."

Minato blinked. "Ah... Alright." _A team mission..._

The three waited in silence for about another half a minute, before a couple of knocks came on the door. Fugaku turned to answer, but the person just walked right in. She was about to greet Sarutobi, but as soon as she saw Minato she grinned and wrung her arm around his neck. She pulled his head down and wildly ruffled his yellow hair.

"Kaze-yatsu! I haven't seen you since the Chuunin Exams!" The Inuzuka girl grinned when she could feel Minato flailing to get out of the neck lock.

"Tsume, that's enough."

Fugaku looked down just in time to spot a black and grey, retriever-sized dog trotting in. His left ear was missing. Tsume sighed a bit but released Minato, allowing the blond to move back a bit to fix his hair and calm himself.

"K... Konnichiwa, Tsume-san..." Minato greeted weakly, running his fingers through his hair to fix it. He fixed his crooked hitai-ate while he was cleaning himself. Tsume groaned a bit, absently scratching her upside down, triangular red markings on her cheeks. "You're always too formal, Kaze-yatsu..." She grumbled under her breath. Shaking her head, the Inuzuka girl looked over at Sarutobi.

"So what's the mission, Hokage-sama?" She questioned with one hand on her hips.

"We have to wait for the fourth member of the platoon..." Sarutobi replied. Tsume groaned impatient. Kuromaru, her ninken partner, reminded her to be patient while he sat on his haunches. The four waited in silence once more, the panting of Kuromaru the only audible noise at the moment. Tsume's impatient foot tapping added onto her ninken's panting. When a knock finally came at the door, the Inuzuka personally spun around on her heels and yanked the door open.

"About time-" Tsume halted in mid-yell, blinking a bit. "... Who're you...?"

Minato looked over at the door, and his eyes widened a bit. He could literally feel his hard pounding against his ribcage, and he fought the blush that was rising on his face. Sarutobi examined the flustered blond, a brow risen slightly. _So Jiraiya was right..._

"Erk..." Kushina awkwardly stared back at Tsume. Fugaku just motion for Tsume to move, allowing Kushina enter the room.

"Welcome, Kushina-san." Sarutobi greeted, finally lowering his hands away from his mouth to pick up the scroll that lay on his desk. Kushina nodded a bit, looking over at the Uchiha and Inuzuka before her gaze fell upon Minato. Minato inwardly stiffened.

"Hey blondy...!" Kushina grinned a bit and approached him, clearly happy to see someone she was familiar with other than Sarutobi. Minato inwardly cursed, hopping that no one was able to hear his heart pounding or see the red that was beginning to taint his cheeks. He grinned a bit, raising a hand in a wave since he was scared whatever he said would come out in a stutter. Fugaku cleared his throat and folded his arms behind his back, turning so that he could face the Sandaime Hokage. Tsume and Kuromaru mimicked this, and Minato quickly followed suit. Kushina just glimpsed at the other three Chuunin, then faced Sarutobi was well. Sarutobi examined all of them standing in a line, noting the ranging from tallest to shortest. Fugaku, Tsume (Kuromaru in front of her), Minato then Kushina. He regarded this thought, inhaling and exhaling to begin explaining the mission.

"You all should know by now that you're here on a mission together. Though all of you are of the same rank, Fugaku is the leader for obvious reasons." Sarutobi started. "It's a possibly high C-ranked mission involving two parts. The first part is to escort the client back to his village along the border of Taki no Kuni. Part two is defend his village from the thieves and rogues who have been reported in attacking and stealing from the said village."

"Are they ninja, Hokage-sama?" Fugaku questioned calmly, his stoic expression never wavering. Sarutobi shook his head.

"If they were ninja, we wouldn't know what rank they were so it would be a B or A-ranked mission than a C-rank. These are just normal rogues whom attack innocent people." Sarutobi assured. Fugaku dipped his head into a single nod.

"Do we leave immediately?"

"There's a few minutes for you four to prepare anything you need. Clothes, weapons... Prepare well. Even the client doesn't know how long the mission will last." Sarutobi spoke, his hands folding atop his desk again. "He will meet you at the village gates..."

Fugaku nodded at this, lowering into a bow. Tsume and Minato mimicked this and lowered into a bow, followed by Kushina at last minute. Fugaku approached the desk and took the scroll that the Hokage handed to him, before he silently turned on his heels and headed towards the door. Sarutobi inwardly chuckled when he saw that Minato flusteredly followed the Uchiha out the door. Kushina followed the group silently, while Tsume and Kuromaru followed the new kunoichi. Once the Inuzuka closed the door to the office behind them, she jogged a bit to catch up to the fellow kunoichi.

"So you're Kushina or something, right? I'm Inuzuka Tsume, and he's Kuromaru." Tsume introduced with a light grin before motioning down with her hand to Kuromaru. Kushina nodded at this, glad to see another kunoichi in the village. "You knew to the village or something? You smell different and I haven't seen you around, on top of that."

"I'm Uzumaki Kushina, dattebayo." Kushina returned the grin. It faded a bit, but she forced it on. "I came from the Uzu no Kuni... But it's gone now..." Kushina was surprised that it didn't hurt as much to talk about her old country. Relief filled her inaudible sigh. Tsume nodded a bit, but was rather confused. She shrugged it off.

"So I guess we'll be on this mission together, huh? But this isn't time for chitchat, we have to go prepare and wait at the gates." Tsume grinned, unconsciously petting Kuromaru on the head as they walked down the stairs. "So I'll see you in a bit then, Kushina!" Tsume jumped the last half of the stairs, diving forward and landing on her hands before darting forward on all fours like a dog. Kuromaru followed her lead but darted down the stairs instead, quickly bounding after his human companion as they ran down the street to their home. Kushina rose a brow in response to this. _Inuzuka...? Their surname says it all..._

Minato glanced over his shoulder and at the red-haired kunoichi. He inhaled and exhaled a bit, before he halted to wait for her, not wanting to be rude and walk ahead without her. Fugaku didn't seem to mind, just continuing to walk on ahead without so much as pausing for a brief moment. Minato breathed deeply a couple of more times in an attempt to calm himself. _Easy, easy..._ Luckily, Kushina spoke before him to save him the trouble and possible humiliation.

"So your first mission and it's with me, huh?" Kushina questioned once she caught up, walking along side of the blond Chuunin. "Too bad it's my _second_ one." She grinned in a mocking manner. Minato could feel his heart beginning to pound again, though this time he managed to fight the heat that was rising to his cheeks.

"Aah... But I'll catch up. It's only one mission difference." Minato pointed out as they walked down the street, both heading in the same direction as their home. "I'm stronger, so I'll naturally go on more missions than you do, Kushina-san." He smirked a bit, trying his best to ignore the drumming in his chest. Kushina snorted at this.

"I'll give you the right to say you're stronger than me when you become a Jounin. No, _Hokage_." Kushina folded her arms and sneered slightly. Though the mocking grin remained on her face after wards.

Minato grinned in return, still inwardly fighting to keep himself from turning red. "Is that it? Then I'll become Yondaime Hokage, how about that, then?"

Kushina snorted. "Fine." She said, slightly frustrated she wasn't able to think up a good comeback in response. Red-brown eyes examined the streets for a few moments, before she shrugged. "I'm staying over this way, so I'll see you at the gates."

"You sure you know where that is?" Minato teased. Kushina stuck her tongue out, but turned down the next corner and disappeared off in a run. Minato wearily smiled, his cheeks clearly red by this point. He quickly remembered that he had to meet the others at the gates soon and shook his head, blurring out of sight in a Shunshin to lessen the distance between where he was and his home.

Minato quickly opened the door and slammed it closed, running up the stairs to quickly prepare whatever he needed. Minato couldn't stop himself from smiling, it seemed. He dug through his small closet for a moment, pulling out a small bag. He shrugged and figured it would be good, turning around to pack the supplies. The blond jumped when he saw his sensei leaning against the wall by one of his windows.

"Sensei...!"

"Hey there, 'Nato." Jiraiya raised his hand slightly but kept his arms folded. He tried not to grin too much. "You going to enjoy your mission?"

Minato grinned a bit as he moved around his room, packing a set of clothes as well as weapons. He paused for a moment, before proceeding to pack a set of shuriken. "How did you know? I only just got the mission minutes ago." Jiraiya tried to look innocent, but he failed and burst out laughing, causing the blond Chuunin to jump a bit.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I've known you were going on a mission since yesterday." Jiraiya kept grinning as he tried to stifle his laughter. Minato paused from closing his bag, thinking for several moments and then looking up at his sensei.

"You knew about the mission then... Aahh!! Then you and Sandaime-sama set up the mission so that myself and...!" Minato stopped before he could say _her_ name. Especially with his parents home. They, especially, didn't need to know. Jiraiya had the hardest time holding in his laughter.

"Yup... Don't you just love me?"

Minato only sputtered, the words tripping over each other as they left his mouth. Red-faced, Minato took his bag and slung it onto one shoulder, holding onto his sword with the other as he stormed out of his room in a flustered manner. Jiraiya grinned and followed, falling silent when Minato received a yell from his father to lower the volume of his footsteps. The white-haired Gama-Sennin followed Minato down the stairs, silently catching the door when Minato flung it open, and then gently closing it behind him. Jiraiya jogged a bit to catch up to Minato, walking a couple of steps behind him.

"Aw, you can't possibly tell me that you're mad." Jiraiya slipped his hands into his pockets. "I mean you like her, so I made sure Sensei gave you a mission with Kushina. What's so wrong about that?"

"N-Nothing! But it's just that...!" Minato spun around and began walking back wards. "What would be the point if she didn't like me back, sensei?"

Jiraiya had an expression that Minato couldn't interpret. "Well we'll never know unless you tell her how you feel... This mission's a good chance to tell her."

"But what if she doesn't-"

"That's not like you Minato. Normally you're so determined and positive. One girl and suddenly your whole personality's taking a mood swing?"

"..." Minato lowered his head, spinning back around to walk forward. "... I'll see you in about a week or so, sensei." Minato only murmured before he darted forward in a Shunshin towards the gates. Jiraiya stopped in the street, hands still in his pockets as he watched a yellow blur travel by rooftops. He shook his head and turned back around, trailing back towards the direction of the red Hokage Tower. _Minato... Don't be so negative. It's weird seeing you like that._

"You're late."

Was the first greeting that Minato received once he reached the gates, Fugaku's tone unreadable and failed to give away if he was angry or not. Minato inwardly sighed as he approached the waiting group, clearly noting that the others, even Kushina, had gotten here before him. A rather short man was standing by Fugaku, only reaching up to the Uchiha's chin in height. Some of his medium-length brown hair was messily combed over to one side, hiding the corner of his right eye. He wore some simple commoner clothing, and a single-strap bag was slung across his back. Fugaku's onyx eyes looked up from the map he was skimming. Tsume frowned a bit at the Uchiha, shifting her feet slightly.

"Well it's better late than never, Fugaku-_taichou_." The Inuzuka kunoichi growled. "And Kushina just got here a few moments ago as well as myself, so he's not that late."

Fugaku's face remained expressionless as ever. "In battle a few moments is all you have to attack. If you're a moment late or if you hesitate, you're dead." Fugaku replied almost mechanically. Kushina rose a brow in response, frowning slightly.

"Well this isn't the battlefield now is it, dattebayo?" Kushina growled in response, backing up Tsume in defending Minato. Fugaku stared back calmly at the kunoichi, before he rolled up the map and handed it back to the client.

"No, I suppose it's not. But it's still rude to keep the client as well as the rest of the team waiting." Fugaku stated before he spun around gracefully on his heels. "Let's head out to your village than, Tamura-san." Without so much as pausing or looking over his shoulder, the Uchiha raised his hand up to his shoulder and motioned for the other Chuunin to follow. Kushina and Tsume followed while fuming inwardly at Fugaku's attitude. Minato sighed softly and followed the group, Kuromaru slowing his pace a bit to trot along side the blond. The ninken made sure to speak in a low volume.

"Ne... That girl. Kushina, right?" Kuromaru murmured huskily, making sure to walk on the side of Minato so his lone ear could hear his response. Minato's shoulders tensed slightly at this, his blue gaze straying over to the kunoichis. Kushina and Tsume were chatting with each other, clearly enjoying the presence of another kunoichi. Minato looked back down to his left and at the black-and-gray ninken. Kuromaru was looking up at Minato in response.

"... Do you like her?"

Minato nearly tripped over his own feet at the blunt, whispered question, but managed to keep himself up and straightened himself. "Wh.. what're you talking about, Kuromaru...-san?"

Kuromaru shook his head at the formal speech. "Just Kuromaru is fine. And you like Kushina, don't you?" He murmured. "When she arrived at the office your heart was beating like crazy, Minato."

The blond Chuunin turned red at this. _Kuromaru could hear..._

Kuromaru just continued talking. "And I'm sure it's not beating that fast because you're scared of her or anything. Then there's the fact that you're turning red when I mention her." Kuromaru pointed out, his tail flicking slightly. He leisurely walked along side Minato, his sight trailing over to his partner. Minato followed the ninken's gaze, his blush deepening slightly.

"... Does Tsume-san know?" Minato mumbled in embarrassment. Kuromaru exhaled a husky sigh. Minato stiffened at this, but calmed slightly when he saw the dog shake his head.

"She was too focused on Kushina to hear you." Kuromaru said as he glimpsed up at front to Tsume. "Inuzuka humans have acute hearing that can be near equivalent to the ninken's, but since Tsume's still young she has to focus to be able to hear the stuff I can..." He paused for a few moments. "Once she gets older, the focus requirement won't be needed."

The dog paused a bit. "I'm drifting off the subject... Why don't you tell her?"

Minato hesitantly nodded at this, slowly trailing off in thoughts with a sigh. _Sounds like what sensei said to me a few minutes ago..._ Kuromaru just bounded on ahead when he saw Minato dozing, trotting alongside Tsume while panting lightly. Kushina looked down when she saw the dog rejoin them, before looking over her shoulder and at Minato.

"Oi, blondy! Why you back there, 'tebayo?" She questioned. Minato was snapped out of his thoughts, blue eyes staring at Kushina's brown-red ones.

"Err..." Minato tried to find some explanation, but Kushina just motioned for him to catch up. Minato could feel himself redden slightly, his gaze flickering over at Kuromaru and Tsume. Tsume rose a brow in wondering why Minato was behind as well, while Kuromaru just used his eyes to motion over to Kushina's side. Minato nodded slightly, quickening his pace so that it matched the other Chuunins'.

"Gomen... I was just wondering what the mission would be like. Same with what the Taki no Kuni is like."

Kushina stifled a shrug. "It's a pretty environmental place. Since there's all kinds of lakes and streams the country's pretty green."

Minato and Tsume blinked and this, looking over at the red-haired kunoichi. Fugaku even glanced over his shoulder at this. "...?" Tamura grinned and nodded a bit, slowing his pace so he could chat with his other escorts.

"You're correct, ma'am..." Tamura murmured. Kushina smirked lightly at this.

"How did you know?" Tsume questioned as she scratched her head with sharpened nails.

"Uzu's country is close by to the Taki Kuni. I guess you could say we were allies, dattebayo." Kushina shrugged a bit, inwardly relieved that talking about her old country didn't affect her much now. All she really needed to do was focus on talking about the country rather more than the people...

"You seem to know quite alot of about Uzu." Tamura nodded slightly as he glimpsed up wards at the sky. "I wonder how they're doing. I should probably go visit them soon to buy some stuff..."

"...!" _He doesn't know..._ Kushina flinched and shook her head. "Oi... Tamura-san, was it? A couple of weeks ago Uzu was... destroyed."

"..." Fugaku remained silent, only continuing to lead the group through the Hi no Kuni. Tamura looked back at her, eyes widened and shock clearly evident on his face.

"Destroy...?"

Kushina nodded, her expression unreadable. "We were ambushed by an unknown enemy. There was only a few of them but they took down the village like it was nothing." She muttered mechanically. "The village was burned to the ground despite the rain, all the ninja are possibly dead, and the commoners' whereabouts are unknown." Kushina bit her lower lip.

"..." Minato lowered his gaze to the ground as they walked. _Kushina-san..._

"I'm... shocked to hear that." Tamura managed to stumbled out. "I take it you're from Uzu, then...? Since you seem to know so much...?"

Kushina only nodded, quickening her pace slightly so that she walked in the gap between Fugaku and the others. Her head tilted down wards a bit, closing her eyes as she inwardly fought to calm down. _Dammit... dammit..._ Her fists clenched by her sides as she walked a couple of paces behind Fugaku and a few paces ahead of the group behind her. Tsume frowned a bit, but exhaled a light sigh and remained silent. Kuromaru shook his head a bit, continuing to trot along side Tsume. Tamura walked along side his younger escorts, sadly wondering about the Uzu no Kuni and why he didn't know of it's annihilation. Fugaku just continued to lead them and remained silent as ever, as if keeping his thoughts and opinions to himself.

Minato sadly stared at Kushina's back, before he shifted forward and caught up with her, walking along side of her at her pace. "Kushina-san?"

Kushina avoided his gaze by continuing to look down wards. "What?"

Minato bit his lip, fighting to make sure he didn't stutter. "Do you remember what I told you a few days ago?" He questioned. "Try not to be sad.. It's a whole new village with lots to do..."

"..." Kushina remained silent at this, and Minato sighed thinking it would be best to leave her alone for the time being. He was about to slow his pace so that he was along side of Tsume and Tamura, but Kushina nodded, which stopped him from doing so.

"Yeah... You're right." Kushina murmured, raising her head and looking over at Minato. She grinned a bit widely. Minato felt himself inwardly stiffen, but he grinned back in response.

"See? So don't be sad or anything... We're on a mission, remember?" Minato's grin faded into a smirk. "Don't mess up now."

"Whaaat? Me, mess up? I have more experience than you do when it comes to missions!"

"You've only been on one more mission than I have, Kushina-san!!" Minato retorted. Kushina snorted, and threw another comeback at the blond. The two kept arguing with each other. Tsume was clearly amused at this, chuckling at all of the added insults. Kuromaru watched Minato, nodding slightly.

_Well I suppose you're moving at a good pace, Minato... It'll be easier if you just tell her. This mission is a rather good chance to tell her how you feel._ Kuromaru shrugged and continued following Tsume. He glimpsed up wards at the sky when his nose detected some change in the weather. Although the day was rather cleared early, some clouds were beginning to shift overhead and threatened to bring rain down on the country once more.

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **If you're wondering why the pace of the plot progress is slow... Well, there are a couple of reasons. Reason one. The bush. I love to f-cking beat around that bush. _Prance_ around the bush. Love it.  
Reason two. Character development. Every good book that I've read and become a fan of has stretched so there's room for character development. It makes the book alot more interesting and realistic. If you know what I'm saying. I'm stretching this fanfic to be as long as possible, so I'm leaving room for character development as well.  
I hope none of you don't mind. Though if you do mind, then you'll have to deal with the character development. Though I don't understand how that can be a bad thing, frankly enough. -shrug-

Tsume and Kuromaru make their debut as well as Fugaku. O:

But on another note. Thank you all so much for the positive reviews! It makes Ki-Ki happy. C:  
I'll type out this fic to the best of my abilities, so please continue to read and enjoy..! (Also, Happy New Years! -damn it's pretty late-)


	7. Pray

**Chapter VII: Pray**

Kushina looked up when she felt a few drops of rain hit her body. Indeed the clouds had finally caught up to them, darkening the sky and filling the air with rumbling thunder. She grinned a bit when the rain was beginning to come down upon the Hi no Kuni once more. Kushina looked around to see if the other platoon members were going to protest against the rain. Minato continued to stare up at the sky, despite the rain coming down. Fugaku just continued to lead the group as if the rain weren't there. Tamura looked a bit nervous, but shifted so he could properly close all the zippers and buttons on his one-sling bag. Kuromaru's tail was wagging in response to his fur getting damp, Tsume grinning as well while exchanging glances with her Ninken companion.

"A-ano... Is it like a rain season in the Hi no Kuni or something?" Tamura questioned once he securely closed his bag. Kushina shrugged in response, since she hasn't lived in Konoha long enough to know the weather changes. Minato and Tsume, on the other hand, nodded in unison.

"Hai, Tamura-san... The Hi no Kuni got it's name for obvious reasons... The environment is pretty stable so we don't see drastic weather changes." He explained. "I guess you can say that the rain is telling us that there won't be much snow this year, as usual."

Tamura nodded, glimpsing around to examine the leaves on the tree. The leaves were indeed green, though they held a slightly paler coloring than the leaves in the summer. Tamura thought for a moment, and remembered that it was practically the middle of fall by this point. Kushina stared at the green leaves as well, red-brown eyes examining them for a bit. _It always snowed every winter in Uzu..._

"I see... Do you guys enjoy the snow when it comes?" Tamura inquired curiously. Kushina was snapped out of her thoughts when Tamura asked, her gaze shifting over to the other Konoha ninja. Minato blinked in response to this, before he grinned lightly and dipped his head into a couple of nods.

"Of course I do... It's nice to see some change in weather in Konoha. It always seems like summer, that's why." He replied. Tsume snorted.

"It's great training as well! Trying to just plow your way through the snow! Though it does raise the amount of D-rank missions." The Inuzuka kunoichi rolled her eyes and snorted slightly. "The usual 'clear the streets' or 'dig out a house' missions... Those ones really pile up."

"I see." Tamura shook his head when he felt the water beginning to pile up on his hair. "What about you, Uzumaki-san?"

"I'm not sure, dattebayo." Kushina shrugged slightly from where she walked with the group. "I'll have to buy some winter clothes if it ends up snowing. Otherwise I'll freeze to death." She muttered a bit. Tsume laughed a bit.

"Then come over to the Inuzuka's house! We'll keep you warm!" Tsume snickered a bit. Kuromaru rolled his eyes.

"As much as Kushina has a sense of humor, I don't think that would work out either way." He muttered as he shook his head. Kushina laughed wearily and regarded the Ninken slightly.

"Err. I'm fine, 'tebayo..."

"... Hey."

The group halted slightly and looked up at Fugaku. The Uchiha was half-turned and looking back at the group, his expression unreadable as usual.

"Tamura-san, would you like to stop for the night and continue in the morning?" He questioned. Tamura blinked at this, holding onto the straps of his bag and looking down at the other four escorts through the rain. Minato just stared back at him, waiting for an answer. Tsume's gaze flickered over to Fugaku every now and then, while Kushina looked around as if trying to figure out how Fugaku knew it was getting dark, considering that the dark rain clouds were completely blocking the sky from view. Tamura fidgeted a bit, before he nodded a bit and sighed.

"I suppose... Though I don't exactly want to hold you guys back."

"We think of the client before ourselves." Fugaku only replied.

"..." Tamura glanced over at the younger ninja. Minato dipped his head into a couple of nods, frowning slightly and his eyes closed.

Tamura sighed a bit and shifted his one-sling bag. "Alright... Let's go find a dry place to stay..." He murmured.

Kushina watched as Tamura rubbed his hands together coldly, before holding them closely to the fire in an attempt to stay warm. They had found a small clearing just a bit off to the side of the main path. The only problem was that it still rained. So Tsume and Kuromaru said they would deal with it, quickly jumping into the trees and shifting the branches so that they shielded out most of the rain. Minato helped them by going to collect a few other branches that had fallen from other trees and handing them over to the Inuzuka pair. So the two swiftly made a small 'roof', while Fugaku gathered a couple of sticks and leaves with his foot lazily, and conjuring just a small amount of chakra for a tiny Katon jutsu to light the pile of foliage. Kushina growled since Fugaku had kept looking at her while everyone was working, as if he were silently telling her to make herself useful. She just frowned and stood by Tamura, motioning for him to sit by the fire and dry off.

Now Tsume and Kuromaru were surrounding the fire, laying on their sides in sleep while the fire slowly dried them off. Fugaku sat a bit distanced from the fire, his arms and legs folded while his eyes closed. Tamura was still trying to warm himself. Minato sat a couple of feet away from Kushina.

"You should get some, Kushina-san... Tamura-san." Minato murmured, glimpsing at the kunoichi, lowering his gaze, then looking over at the client. Tamura weakly nodded and shivered a bit.

"Aah... Arigatou..." He murmured. He shifted so he wasn't dreadfully close to the fire, but not far from it so that he wouldn't feel the warm. Tamura then laid on his side, shifting his bag and using it as a makeshift pillow. Kushina just shrugged and leaned back a bit, locking her arms behind her so that they held her up.

"I'm fine, blondy... My shift's right after yours anyways."

"All the more reason to get some rest." Minato pointed out, his gaze trailing over to Kushina before quickly flickering back to the fire, as if he were afraid Kushina could catch him staring. Kushina shrugged a bit.

"Well I'm wide awake, blondy. If you lived back in Uzu, you'd understand." Kushina inwardly flinched again. _Stop doing that, 'tebayo..._ She mentally hit herself. Minato's gaze flickered over to the other members of the platoon, staring over at Fugaku in particular, to see if they were sleeping. Kuromaru's paw twitched in his sleep, and Tsume rolled over and stifled a groan. Tamura looked to be asleep, and Fugaku's breathing was even so he appeared to be resting as well.

"Are you fine with bringing up Uzu so often, Kushina-san?" Minato murmured, not wanting to wake up the others. Kushina sighed a bit, shifting her legs so that they could stretch a bit.

"... No." She mumbled. "But I miss it so much that my mind keeps bringing it up without me thinking, dattebayo."

She stared at her zori-covered feet, which shifted so that they rocked from side to side to lightly tap each other. When Minato was silent, she looked up at him. His blue eyes were staring at her, but when she turned to look at him, his blue gaze quickly flickered back to the warm-colored fire. The corner of Kushina's mouth twitched at this, inwardly wondering why he had looked away so quickly.

"Do you... want to talk about it?" Minato awkwardly asked, shifting to idly play with the rope that bound his sword to his back. Kushina sighed a bit and tilted her head up wards. She stared at the thin blanket of branches and leaves that hovered over the small clearing. Red-brown eyes closed a bit and she exhaled a sigh to remain silent. The corner of Minato's mouth twitched as he slowly trailed his gaze back to her.

"... Then... Do you want to explain to me why you're so wide awake?" He tried again.

Kushina's expression lightened slightly at this, though it still held some sadness behind it. "The rain makes me think of back in Uzu... So I guess I'll just be straightforward and tell you, 'tebayo. Whenever it'd rain, all the ninja would just run outside and train with each other until it stopped raining... Alot of us are water-based, so the rain was a great way of training and perfecting some Suiton attacks, dattebayo... Helps the manipulation of the water element and such." Kushina stifled a shrug. She still kept her head tilted up wards, her eyes distant as she recalled the memories.

"So it pretty much just became an instinct for us... Whenever it'd start raining, we'd stop or wake up or whatever then just run outside and train. It keeps us wide awake, so I guess it's just something that still follows me around, datte'yo." Kushina shrugged once more. She smiled lightly, though Minato could clearly see the pain that hid behind it. He lowered his head slightly and exhaled a soft sigh.

"... You should get some rest, Kushina-san..." He murmured.

Kushina shook her head. "If I get some rest, will you stop bugging me about it, 'tebayo?" She questioned.

"Hai..."

Kushina snorted a bit then shifted a bit, releasing her locked arms so that she flopped roughly onto her back, grunting a bit then exhaling a sigh. "I guess I'll count back wards from one hundred and force myself to sleep." She folded her left arm over her stomach and exhaled another sigh. She closed her eyes and stifled a yawn. "Good night, then."

"Good night, Kushina-san." Minato murmured softly. He couldn't stop the small small that crossed his as he watched her drift off to sleep.

"So how much more days does it take to get there again?" Tsume complained loudly to make sure Fugaku could hear from where he was walking ahead of the group. The Uchiha didn't halt or even glimpse over his shoulder, just continuing to lead the group through the country.

"... Another couple of days." Fugaku only replied. Tsume could easily hear the Uchiha's soft reply due to her inhuman hearing, and sighed a bit.

"Geez... It'd be easier if we could just Shunshin there..." The Inuzuka kunoichi just grumbled. Tamura lowered his head a bit.

"I'm sorry..." He murmured. "But I'm not a ninja like the rest of you."

Tsume snorted a bit, then released a yelp. Fugaku was immediately in front of her, arms folded across his chest while onyx eyes stared down at her.

"Think of the client before yourself." He growled. Tsume shifted back wards a few steps then nodded wearily. She frowned, trying to keep her growl inaudible.

"Hai, Fugaku_-taichou_," She hissed through her teeth. Fugaku just stoically stared back at Tsume's glaring eyes, before he turned around. Minato, Kushina and Tamura shifted so they were out of Fugaku's way when he walked past them. With that he continued to lead the group through the forest, the others a couple of steps behind the usual pace they kept when they followed Fugaku. Minato and Kushina wearily exchanged a glance, before the blond Chuunin looked over at Tamura. The client slowed his pace so that he was in step with Tsume.

"I'm sorry that he got mad at you." Tamura murmured. Tsume folded her arms and continued to glare at Fugaku's back.

"It's alright. I was just playing around." She muttered. Kuromaru shook his head.

"It isn't wise to 'play around' with someone as serious as Fugaku, Tsume." Kuromaru muttered in response. "He's the serious type prone to stick to the rulebooks." He muttered under his breath.

Kushina rolled her eyes at the conversation. _Stickler... Those kind of people are never fun._ She thought to herself. The former Uzu kunoichi looked over at Fugaku's back, watching him to see if he would so much as glance over his shoulder. She wondered if he was simply ignoring the talk about him, or if he couldn't hear at all. Kushina rolled her eyes once more. _If people talked about me behind my back, I'd tell them to tell it to my face, 'tebayo._

Her gaze trailed up wards to examine the sky once more. It seemed like they were walking out of the worst of the rainstorm that was currently hovering over the Hi no Kuni. The sky ahead of them was still light gray, though patches of the blue sky was visible several miles ahead of them. Kushina took the time to look over her shoulder as she walked, clearly noting the black clouds that hung in the distance. She squinted a bit, and she could see that it was raining, where ever those black clouds were. Konoha was likely receiving yet another day of rain, from what it seemed to Kushina. The kunoichi stifled a yawn when she turned her head back in the direction of the path. From the corner of her eye, she saw Minato shift. She turned to look at him, and blinked when he had a smug expression.

"Tired, Kushina-san?"

Kushina snorted. "Not."

"Then what was with the yawn?" He pointed out, still smirking lightly.

"Did you forget? It's not raining, so I'm ti-" Kushina caught herself before she said the word. Minato's smirk only widened a bit. In embarrassment, Kushina swiftly flung her arm out and hit him on the side of the head. Minato reeled to his right a bit, but quickly balanced himself and stared at the kunoichi, his hand covering where he was struck and his mouth opened in shock.

Tsume burst out laughing at this, her brooding mood immediately lifting at the sight before her. She quickly moved forward and slung her arm around Kushina's shoulders, grinning smugly at Minato.

"How's that, Kaze-yatsu? That's one of the many reasons why you should't make fun of girls." Tsume continued to grin and looked at Kushina. The other kunoichi blinked a bit, then but grinned widely as well. It felt good to be with another kunoichi that had a tomboyish demeanor...

Kuromaru rolled his eyes and trotted to walk along side Minato, whom distanced himself between the two girls. He looked up at the blond Chuunin.

"Was that shameless flirting?" He asked softly. Minato immediately turned red at this, quickly shaking his head. He glimpsed over at the other kunoichi, relieved when they were talking and laughing amongst themselves. Minato looked back down at the ninken. Kuromaru was grinning back at the blond, the roots of his fangs visible in that smug grin. That only made Minato blush more deeply.

"K... Kuromaru..." He stuttered. Kuromaru released a soft bark that seemed like laughing to the blond.

"Aah... Like I said, this trip is an excellent chance to tell Kushina how you feel." Kuromaru murmured between laughs, being sure to keep his voice low so that only Minato could hear it. Minato rubbed the back of his neck in an embarrassed manner.

"I don't know, Kuromaru... I mean we have to focus on the mission..." Minato mumbled. The black-and-grey ninken shook his head as he continued to walk along side Minato.

"Then tell her when we get back to Konoha... Just tell her either way. You'll live the rest of your life regretting that you never told her, Minato."

Minato stifled a light, inaudible groan. "Does just about everyone know what to say when it comes to stuff like this?" He questioned as he tilted his head back. Kuromaru shrugged.

"I'm a bit older than you think, Minato... Then there's the fact that I'm also a dog and my hearing is thrice as good as yours." Kuromaru shrugged again. Minato just shook his head.

"Can we just focus on the mission, then, Kuromaru_-san_?" Minato grumbled. Kuromaru shook his head quickly, as if he were trying to dry his fur from imaginary water.

"Don't be so formal. I'm a dog." He growled, lifting his lip so that his fangs and his gum were visible in a type of sneer. Minato sighed.

"Hai, hai..."

The next day was similar to those of the previous day. Tsume would complain a bit just to make Fugaku angry, to which Fugaku would always reply the same replies. Either that be "Think of the client before yourself", or "We are not here to complain, we are here to escort Tamura-san back to his village", or something along those lines. Tsume and Kushina would growl among st themselves about how Fugaku was too stuck up when it came to the rules, while Tamura guiltily walked along side of them. Kuromaru and Minato would have the same talk, much to the blond's dislike. By this point the group was out of the Hi no Kuni and walking along the borders of the Taki and Kusa Kunis. Tamura seemed to have mixed feelings about having to travel only another day or so just to get to his village. Later in the middle of the afternoon he looked over at the young Chuunins.

"Do you really think you can handle the ones that are attacking my village...?" He asked. Kushina rose a brow and stared at him for several moments, as if forgetting the second part of the mission. Tsume snorted while Minato nodded and grinned some reassurance.

"There isn't any need to worry, Tamura-san." Minato said. "These are just regular thieves and thus, right?"

Tamura was only half way through his hesitant nod before Tsume snorted.

"We're Chuunin, remember that, Tamura-yatsu!" Tsume looked up at Fugaku, whom was glaring over his shoulder in a warning at the Inuzuka kunoichi. Tsume just stuck her tongue out at the Uchiha until he looked back to the front. Tsume then returned her attention back to the client.

"We're fully capable of dealing with commoners such as them." Kuromaru murmured as he walked besides his human companion. Tamura still hesitantly nodded at this.

"Hai..."

"..." Fugaku slowed to a halt suddenly. The group behind him took another two steps before they realized that the leader had stopped, halting in their own tracks as well. The ninja in the group frowned at this while Tamura looked confused and worried. Fugaku slowly lifted his hand up to shoulder level, before he twisted it slightly to the right. Minato's blue gaze flickered over to that direction. Kuromaru's maw twitched a bit.

"We're upwind." He muttered his explanation. Tsume growled softly and nodded, cursing that they were upwind. It only meant that they couldn't detect the scents.

"Namikaze."

The blond Chuunin turned his head back when he heard his name being called. Fugaku was turned around by this point, looking at him. "You're the fastest. Go check it out." He ordered. Tsume growled a bit.

"It'd make more sense if me and Kuromaru-"

"You don't think before you act and might end up attacking or confronting them." Fugaku interrupted calmly. Tsume gritted her sharpened teeth and clenched her fist by her side. Kuromaru just nosed her hand to make sure she didn't cut her palm open with her nails.

"... Hey, can I go, then, 'tebayo?" Kushina muttered. "Blondy might get himself into trouble, even if he is fast."

Minato rubbed the back of his neck at the kunoichi. _Kushina-san..._

Fugaku stared at Kushina for several moments. Since Kushina was new to the village, he wasn't aware of what she was capable of. Since she seemed to be familiar with Minato, Fugaku shifted his onyx gaze over to the blond Chuunin. "...?"

Minato blinked when he noticed that Fugaku was silently asking for Minato's opinion. He looked over at the others, then back over to where Fugaku had motioned to. "... Let's go, then, Kushina-san..." The blond Chuunin murmured. Kushina grinned slightly at this, then used a Shunshin after Minato disappeared as well. Tsume growled.

"Hey, that's not-" Tsume was interrupted by Kuromaru butting her lightly in the leg with his head. The Inuzuka rose a brow and frowned as she stared down at the Ninken. Kuromaru shook his head, then motioned over to Tamura, whom seemed to be frozen on the spot as he stared at where Minato and Kushina disappeared to. The Inuzuka kunoichi grumbled and unclenched her fist, grumbling a bit.

Fugaku nodded at this, before turning around. "Let's go, Tamura-san. Stay close, just in case Namikaze and... the girl messes up." He shook his head, inwardly wracking his brain to remember the kunoichi's surname.

"Her name's Kushina."

"Right." Fugaku only muttered, seeing that it wasn't the correct answer he was looking for.

Minato paused every few tree branches he traveled on, his blue gaze shifting to look over his shoulder to make sure that Kushina wasn't too far behind. The kunoichi would catch up moments after Minato paused, and the two would proceed to press further into the jungle-like terrain. Minato slowed his pace as he stood up on some of the thicker branches, his sword already drawn to cleanly slit some thick vines that lay in their above-ground path. Kushina continued to follow, her sense of hearing sharpened as she listened for what they were searching for. Red-brown eyes looked up when she saw Minato silently slid his sword back into its sheath. He half-turned to look at her, then motioned forward once more. Kushina nodded silently and followed. As they continued to climb through the trees, Kushina could start hearing gruff voices that were muffled slightly by all the plants and foliage. Minato halted on one of the branches, his hand motioning down wards to the ground below. Kushina followed his line of gaze.

"... stopped us fro' makin' our usual routine. Who does that bastard thin' 'e is? Messin' with us like that..."

"I 'unno... 'e wasn' thar before..."

"Whateve'. We beat 'um up perty good. Nex' time we go back, 'e's dead an' we get our usual stuf'."

"Le's just kill anyone who ge's in our way. The villa'ers will kno' not ta stand up ta us then."

"When shou'd we go, then?"

"Soon. Bu' we should git our dam' in'uries fixed..."

"Yea."

"Yea..."

"..." Minato looked over at Kushina, his eyes narrowed after the voices trailed away, the owners clearly walking deeper into the jungle and not noticing the two eavesdropping ninja. Kushina frowned deeply, her own set of red-brown eyes narrowed. She finally met his narrowed gaze, before the two silently shot off back in the direction of the path, Minato leading. Once he sensed they were far away from the thugs, Minato spoke.

"They attacked someone..! And we have to hurry back to the village otherwise they'll kill someone...!" He hissed. His hands were balled into tight fists as they blurred through the jungle-like terrain, darting around loose vines and barricades of trees.

"This isn't good, 'tebayo." Kushina muttered in response. "It's going to scare Tamura to death."

Minato nodded at this. He raised his right hand and swiftly drew his sword, returning it a second later as if he did nothing with it. Kushina then saw the thick wall of vines before them drop to the ground, allowing them passage back onto the main road. Side-by-side the two darted onto the path and swiftly turned their feet- so quickly that there was a high chance of twisting their ankles, and then darting down the path to catch up to the rest of the group. Soon enough the small dots in the distant became more distinct, and the two were able to tell each of them apart.

Kuromaru and Tsume were the first to look over their shoulder, followed by Fugaku and then finally Tamura. Tamura seemed to have taken their urgency in the wrong direction.

"Are they chasing us..?!"

"No, no." Minato didn't seem too out of breath, but was panting slightly as he slowed to a halt by the group. Kushina panted a bit heavily, wheezing every few deep breathes she took. Fugaku turned around and approached the back of the group and towards the panting two.

"What happened?"

"It was... the thugs that are attacking Tamura's village, datte'yo." Kushina managed to explain. She straightened herself and wiped her cheek with the back of her fingerless gloves. Tamura froze at this. Fugaku just stared back calmly, though his frowned.

"What did you hear?"

"That they attacked someone who was trying to defend the village." Minato explained rather quickly, the words nearly tumbling over each other. That only make Tamura's shoulders stiffen. "But they couldn't get into the village this time, it seemed... Though they said that they beat up the person pretty badly... They're going to return to the village and kill anyone who gets in their way, they said."

Kuromaru unconsciously released a growl, deep from the pit of his throat while his hackles rose and his claws dug into the dirt. Tsume copied his examples slightly, but only clenched her fist and narrowed her eyes. Fugaku remained calm. The Uchiha looked back over at Tamura.

"Do you think you can run the rest of the way to your village, Tamura-san?"

"Tsume and I can carry him, if he can't." Kuromaru nearly snarled his opinion, but managed to calm himself so it was more of a growl. Tamura stiffly shook his head.

"I'm fine... Let's go... Please..." He whispered. Fugaku nodded at this, turning to look at Minato and Kushina.

"Good job. Now let's go." He muttered, before turning around. Fugaku began running, but made sure to keep it at a common pace so that Tamura wouldn't be left behind. Tamura quickly started after him, already panting as he ran a few footsteps behind the leader. Kuromaru and Tsume ran in grace together, years of being together making them used to each other's speed. Minato and Kushina brought up the rear, Kushina glimpsing over her shoulder every now and then to make sure they weren't being followed.

Of course, Tamura was only a commoner and not a ninja like the rest of him, so he started to slow a bit. Kuromaru and Tsume skidded to a halt in unison, the kunoichi's hand already clasped together in a hand seal. Tsume was lowered a bit, while Kuromaru easily leaped onto her back, his paws reaching her shoulders before a large cloud of smoke enveloped them in with a large _poof_! to follow. In return a large dog about the size of a stallion lowered onto its stomach, tossing his head in a motion of Tamura to get on. Tamura wheezed as he nodded, his mouth opened as he fought to get air. He scrambled onto the dog's back the best he could, using the back paw's as a step to get on.

Kushina looked a bit dumbfounded at the lager dog, faltering a bit. Minato just grabbed her by the arm and pulled her past the dog.

"They'll catch up."

Minato realized what he was doing and released her arm, allowing her to run along side of him. He raised one hand to his face and pretend to cough a couple of times lightly, being sure to hide his face, knowing for sure that his face was unbearably red. Kushina didn't seem to mind this, only looking over her shoulder when a light galloping was audible. The stallion-sized replica of Kuromaru, with some patches of dark brown fur, slowed a bit with Tamura on its back, running along side of the group. Fugaku only glimpsed at the large ninken, before he nodded and lurched forward a bit, disappearing in a shunshin. Minato was after him in an instant. It took a few moments for Kushina to register this, but she quickly forced chakra to her feet and blurred after the group. Kuromaru/Tsume nodded.

"Hold on." The large dog warned. Tamura weakly nodded and gripped more tightly onto its hackles, before the dog bounded forward after the group.

"Stay in formation, Namikaze."

Minato blinked when he heard the warning from behind him, nodding a bit and slowing his pace so that Fugaku shot past him. Kushina rolled her eyes when she managed to catch up to him, panting lightly.

"Geez... He's the leader, not you, you know..."

"I know... I just thought that he was ahead..." Minato tried to defend himself, grumbling a bit. Kushina rolled her eyes a bit, but grinned slightly.

"But that just means you're faster than him, right? Some leader. His subordinate's faster than him, datte'sa."

Minato blinked, then grinned back and nodded. "Hai..."

Kushina nodded, then looked back over at the front. The group of ninja traveled in flight for probably half an hour or so, their paces shifting between fast and slow to allow Tamura to adjust to the unnatural flight of the ninja. Fugaku halted suddenly as the trees and foliage opened up before them. Kushina swiftly dug her heels in when Fugaku halted, nearly tumbling into the Uchiha's back. Minato had a better landing than Kushina, quickly grabbing her arm before she stumbled forward again. The blond inwardly cursed himself, but he nodded when Kushina murmured a thanks. Kuromaru/Tsume slowed to a halt with a shaking Tamura on its back. Fugaku approached the small village, before looking over at Tamura. The dog nodded and lowered itself, allowing Tamura to nearly stumble off. In an instant Minato caught the client, steadying the man until he got most of his balance back.

A few villagers poked their heads out from the battered holes in the huts- windows -and murmured amongst themselves. A couple of them rushed out to greet Tamura.

"Tamura-san!! Thank Kami-sama you're back so soon! We've got an injured guy and he doesn't look too good...!" One of the villagers cried as he ran up to the group, only regarding the ninja as he ran up to Tamura. Tamura shakily nodded his head.

"I know... Where is he? Hopefully all the medicine that I bought will heal him..." Tamura murmured. The ninja, besides Fugaku, exchanged glances. The dog dropped the henge, and Tsume and Kuromaru were themselves once more. Tamura saw the confused looks.

"I'm the doctor of the village... Also the old chief's son." He explained quickly. The villager regarded the explanation, before he quickly tugged on Tamura's clothing.

"Come on!! He's been bleeding ever since-!" Tamura's eyes narrowed and he nodded, allowing the villager to lead the way into the village. Kuromaru coughed a bit and shook his head.

"Ugh..! Bleeding is right. That's way too much. Are they sure the guy isn't dead yet...?" The ninken growled as he bounded after the two villagers. Tsume frowned and followed him, soon falling into step with him. Minato shot after him, while Kushina hesitated a bit. _This scent..._ She grimaced and pinched her nose shut, darted after Fugaku when he ran after the rest of the group.

"This way, this way!!" The first villager yelled as he ran through the small place, flinching when his bare feet hit a few rocks every now and then. He turned sharply that he nearly skidded onto the ground, but ran into the hut. Tamura quickly followed, pulling his bag off his back. Kuromaru slowed to a halt, hesitantly taking a step forward before pulling back. Tsume coughed a bit and halted a few steps ahead of Kuromaru, her hands immediately shooting up to her nose and mouth.

"It's so strong...!" She hissed. Minato saw this and halted a few yards behind the Inuzuka pair, not wanting to smell all the blood. "..." Fugaku slowed to a halt besides Minato. Kushina, on the other hand, kept her hand over her nose and mouth and kept running past the group.

"Kushina-san?!"

Kushina grimaced inwardly. The closer she got to the hut the stronger the iron-like stench became. She pressed on and approached the hut, her free hand moving the small woven mat that covered the doorway in a type of door. She heard frantic panting, and her red-brown eyes narrowed at the sight. Tamura was already on his knees, his bag opened as he began yanking out the contents and placing them on the ground, searching for the right material and vile of liquid. The other villager was staring worriedly at the man on the small stone bench.

He was the one that was panting frantically, his eyes closed shut in pain- though it was hard to tell since several lines of blood ran down his dreadfully pale face from beneath his black bangs. He writhed a bit, and another villager inside was holding him down as well as the first one. He continued to writhe in pain, his teeth gritted together as he hissed through his teeth. A pool of blood was visible and painting the stone bench and ground, all of it trailing from the large gash that came from his stomach and torso.

"Hold him still!!" Tamura yelled when the man writhed violently. Kushina was frozen on the spot, unable to look away when Tamura began to peel the torn clothing away from the wound. It only caused the injured man to opened his mouth and yell in agony. Kushina jumped and placed both her hands over her mouth, stiffly backing away.

"Kushina-san?!"

Kushina ignored the yell, continuing to back away in horror when more yells of agony came from inside the hut. She kept backing up until her back bumped against the hut on the other side of the small street. She slowly slid onto the ground, leaning against the other hut with her hands still covering her mouth. Minato lowered onto his knee by Kushina, his hand on her shoulder as he gently shook her.

"Kushina-san?!" He repeated a third time. Fugaku and the others approached, Kuromaru being reluctant in doing so. The Uchiha slowly turned his head in the direction of the hut when another agonized yell echoed. Tsume flinched at all the yells, and Kuromaru was trying to cover his nose with his paw. Minato was still fixated on the horrified kunoichi.

"Kushina!!" Minato yelled only her name this time. Kushina seemed to respond slightly to this, though she only continued to shake from beneath Minato's hand.

"What's wrong? Did all the blood...?" Minato questioned, his gaze finally shooting over to the hut. He looked back at her in time to see the kunoichi shake her head slowly.

"Then what's wrong?" Minato asked loudly over the yells. Kushina swallowed the large lump in her throat, slowly moving her hands down to chest level. Minato leaned in a bit to listen to her whisper.

"That's my brother..."

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **All shall be explained in the next chapter. c: Arena't I evil? A cliffhanger. They're fun for me. Evil to you guys. Ne?

But here are the usual thank yous: Thank you for all the watchers! For all the positive reviews and for the constant wave of fans putting this fic on their alert/favorite list! Arigatou!!

I know that spelling is not my best thing... I swear I proof-read all of my chapters atleast three times but never end up catching the little mistakes. x.x So thank you all for putting those little mistakes aside and appreciating the story!


	8. Every Heart

**Chapter VIII: Every Heart**

"Your... brother?" Minato repeated slowly. Blue eyes were narrowed slightly and then looked over his shoulder when the agonizing wails continued from behind them. He snapped his gaze back to Kushina, only to find that the kunoichi was slowly curling into a ball, eyes widened and looking as if they were about to bulge out of their sockets. Tsume flinched suddenly and kept her mouth and nose covered with her hands, one eye closed.

"Ergh..! Sorry!" She hissed through her hand before she swiftly darted away from the hut, Kuromaru hot on her trail as they ran away from the strong stench that clung to the air. Fugaku just calmly stared down at Kushina, before he turned to look at the hut. "..."

"Come on..." Minato whispered a bit urgently, slipping his fingers around Kushina's arms to pull her to her feet. The kunoichi seemed to be unaware of what was going on around her. She resisted Minato's pull, but reluctantly got to her feet with the blond's aid. Kushina's eyes continued to stare in horror at the entrance of the small hut, shivering when the wails- which had longer intervals in between -persisted.

"Get her away from here. I'll ask Tamura-san about where we'll be staying." Fugaku murmured during the silence. Minato looked at the Uchiha leader and nodded. The blond felt some weight being pressed against his side, and he slowly turned his head, a blush already rising to his face as he did. His eyes instantly widened a bit when he properly looked at Kushina's face. She seemed rather pale in coloring, and her eyes were half closed as if she were about to pass out. With that Minato turned and properly supported her, his gaze shifting over to Fugaku to see his reaction. Fugaku was already at the entrance of the hut Tamura was in, leaning against the door frame as he waited for the patient's wailing to stop. Minato sighed in relief, before he looked back down at Kushina.

"... Come on, Kushina-san..." Minato whispered softly as he took her by the arm and pulling it over his shoulder. He held her wrist so that her arm remained over his shoulder, his blues eyes flickering over to her. Minato hesitantly placed his other at her waist to support her, his eyes looking at her face to see her reaction. Nothing. She still seemed to be in a daze, fighting to remain conscious. Though her eyes drooped, indicating that she was losing the fight. Minato swallowed a bit and exhaled, shifting Kushina a bit as he pulled her down the street.

Kushina's head slowly stirred a bit, before it hung limply by her chest. Minato looked down at the motion, sighing slightly. With this, he wrapped his arm around her waist while his other hand let her arm fall. Minato quickly lowered down and lifted Kushina's legs off the ground, furiously blushing as he carried her away from the 'wailing hut'.

Though, Minato had to admit to himself; Aside from the blushing and the probable flustered expression, it felt nice for him to carry Kushina. He couldn't stop himself from looking down at her while he walked, blue eyes closely examining her face as she leaned against his shoulder. Kushina's own eyes were closed, though her face didn't carry her natural coloring, but instead the paled shade. As Minato walked further away from the hut, he could hear her breathing. Shaky, but even as she slept. As the minutes went by her breathing began to lose the shaken sound. Minato exhaled in relief. Blue eyes looked up at the small street, looking to see if the street was empty. Clearly it was- the villagers were most likely trying to hide from the sickening yells.

Minato bit his lip but hesitantly tilted his head so that it rested atop Kushina's. He blinked at how smooth her red hair was, and his pace slowed with his surprise. _... Sensei was right... _He inhaled her scent a bit, before exhaling a calm sigh and smiling lightly. Minato's gaze slowly trailed up, and he instantly pulled his head off Kushina's when he spotted Kuromaru and Tsume returning down the street. He inwardly hit himself as he tried to force the heat in his cheeks to go down.

"Ugh... Oh shoot. Is she okay?" Tsume asked, her voice sounding a bit odd since she pinched her nose shut. The Inuzuka pair quickly approached Minato, and he slowly nodded, still trying to keep himself from blushing.

"She just passed out..." Minato murmured. Kuromaru coughed a bit and shook his head, his maw wrinkling in a form of grimace.

"We're staying someplace _away_ from that hut, right?" The Ninken growled. Minato sighed a bit.

"Fugaku-taichou is asking..." Minato responded to the question. "Do you think there's a stream nearby where we can get Kushina-san some water? For when she wakes up?"

Kuromaru lowered his head and raised his front paw to cover his nose. "I'd sniff one out for ya, but the blood's just hangin' in the air. If I keep inhaling this smell, I'll get a headache and probably pass out myself..." He growled around his paw. Minato sighed at this. He looked at Tsume, but blinked when she was looking over at one of the huts. Slowly, Minato followed her gaze.

A small girl, probably no older than seven, stood in front of the entrance of the said hut. Next to her was a small boy who went up to her skinny shoulders, one hand by his mouth while the other in the girl's hand. Both of them wore some dusty clothing, which matched with their dirty faces.

"..." Silence fell between all of them, the occasional wails in the distance breaking the silence. The girl looked down at the little boy, before he nodded and turned around to go back into the house. He didn't have to duck to go under the woven mat that was the makeshift door. The little girl stepped forward at this, having to look up to meet Minato and Tsume's gazes.

"We can spare some water for your friend..." She whispered, so softly that Minato nearly didn't catch what she said. Tsume and Kuromaru exchanged glances, before they both returned their gazes back to the girl in unison.

"You seem like you don't eat or drink much... Are you sure?" Tsume asked as she lowered onto one knee in front of the girl. She nodded a bit.

"We have lots of water..." She whispered again. Tsume looked over her shoulder to get Minato's opinion. The blond didn't reply, but when he looked over at Kushina he nodded back at the Inuzuka. Tsume nodded and turned her head back at the girl.

"Alright... Thank you." Tsume said as she got to her feet. The girl nodded and turned around to lead them into her home. The top of her head just barely brushed the mat as well. Tsume used her hand to move it out of the way, holding it open for her Ninken partner as well as Minato- and Kushina. Minato nodded a thanks, blinking at how small the hut was from the inside. It only looked to be about maybe ten feet wide all around, a small pile of wood and rocks in the middle for the fireplace. Some mats and hay were layed out on one side of the room. The boy from earlier was fixing the resting place, looking up at them before he got up and backed away. The girl motioned at the makeshift bed, and Minato nodded and trailed over to that side of the room.

The blond Chuunin was reluctant as he lowered onto one knee and placed Kushina onto the bed, slipping his arms from beneath her. The girl was immediately by Kushina's head, shifting the hay and mats so that her head was leveled a bit higher than her body. The younger boy was just staring at the two girls, his thumb back in his mouth.

"My name is Yumi... and my younger brother's name is Hiroshi..." The girl whispered in her soft tone. Minato nodded a bit, exchanging a glance with Tsume when he felt her gaze burning into the back of his head.

"I'm Namikaze Minato... She's Inuzuka Tsume and the Ninken is named Kuromaru." Minato murmured. He glimpsed around, as if searching for any traces of adults living in the empty hut.

"Are you sure your parents are okay with this...?" Minato asked hesitantly, as if afraid of knowing the answer.

"..." Yumi and Hiroshi exchanged a long look with each other, before they both looked down at their dirty feet. The corner of Minato's mouth twitched.

"Gomen..." He murmured softly. Yumi shook her head.

"It's not your fault... The village is just on valuable grounds... that's why the rogues are attacking us..." Yumi continued to whisper. Hiroshi looked up and nodded. Minato tensed slightly at the mention of the rogues, turning his head to look at Tsume when she approached.

"Yumi... Why are the rogues attacking, exactly?" The kunoichi growled. This was clearly some info that they needed.

"Go get some water, Hiroshi-kun..." Yumi whispered to her brother first. Hiroshi nodded and walked toward the door, stopping to pick up a small wooden barrel before he exited the hut. Yumi looked back up at the older ninja with paled charcoal eyes. "You guys are going to help us, right...? Like Tamura-san said?"

"Yes, we are." Tsume replied immediately, impatiently. "Why are the rogues attacking?"

"... Because this is a smith village..." Yumi whispered. "We used to be one of the many places where weapons and such would be sold.. it used to be big, too, the village... The rogues came barging in and stole the weapons."

"If you guys had weapons, why didn't anyone fight back?" Tsume growled. Yumi flinched at her tone, holding her own small hands to her chest and backing up to the wall. Minato sighed and slowly stepped forward, squatting down to Yumi's eye level while he rested his hands on his knees.

"It's okay... We just need to know the important things..." Minato murmured softly. From behind him, Kuromaru butted Tsume with his head lightly. Yumi looked over at Tsume, who was frowning slightly as if feeling guilty. Yumi returned her gaze back to Minato's and nodded.

"The grown-ups only knew how to make weapons, not use them..." Yumi whispered. She tilted her head down wards and placed her index finger by her lip, as if thinking of what else to say.

"... The name of this village is Saiwaichou Mura, isn't it?" Minato blinked and looked over his shoulder. Tsume and Kuromaru were already looking back as well, staring at Fugaku who leaned against the door frame with a small barrel tucked under one arm. Hiroshi fidgeted as he stared at the Uchiha standing next to him, before he scurried over to his sister and clutched onto her light clothing. Yumi hesitantly nodded to answer Fugaku's question.

"H... Hai."

Fugaku exhaled a light sigh and entered the house, the barrel of water still under his arm. As he approached, Tsume and Kuromaru moved aside to give him some room, while Yumi hesitantly stepped around Minato and reached out for the barrel. Using the same hand, he handed it to her. Yumi whispered thanks and then turned to kneel by Kushina's side, placing the barrel next to the makeshift bed. Hiroshi was already by his sister's side, holding out a small, torn cloth out for her. Yumi nodded and took the cloth, dunking it into the water and letting it soak for a few moments to get the dust out. Yumi then took the cloth, squeezing it damp using her skinny hands, and folded it. She blinked when she finally noted Kushina's hitai-ate, shifting her gaze over to Minato. "..."

Minato saw this and nodded, shifting forward and gently lifting Kushina's head up with one hand, the other carefully untying her hitai-ate before slipping it off her forehead. Yumi nodded and leaned over to place the damp cloth on the kunoichi's forehead. Minato watched her, before he shifted his gaze up to the Uchiha.

"Fugaku-taichou...? How do you know about this village?" Minato couldn't help but ask, when he remembered when Fugaku asked Yumi about the village's name. Fugaku's onyx gaze flickered over to Minato, before he closed his eyes and exhaled a light sigh.

"This was one of the many smithing villages among the Shinobi Countries. During the time of wars, when the Shinobi villages first started out, they would fight to claim the territory that held villages like these. So that they would have a good supply of metal and weapons to use against rivaling shinobis." Fugaku explained. "This village was probably already dying out, since most shinobi villages have their own weapon smiths. With the rogues around it's probably getting worse of them..."

Yumi flinched at the last two sentences. She lowered her head and remained silent. Minato slowly dipped his head into a couple of nods. Tsume shook her head.

"So I take it the rogues are the ones that really tore up this place bad, right?" She questioned, looking over at Yumi for a response. The girl only nodded her head twice. Tsume sighed at the reply. Silence filled the air, until Hiroshi shifted from where he stood by Yumi, turning to walk around the shinobi.

Tsume looked over her shoulder when Hiroshi took another bucket and left, exchanged a glance with Kuromaru, then turned to follow and help the young boy. Fugaku folded his arms and stared down at Kushina.

"... When she wakes up, move her to the larger huts along the edge of the village." Fugaku murmured to Minato, whom looked up at the Uchiha when he spoke. "Tamura-san said that the house is currently empty since his brother just passed on. He said we can stay there."

Minato shivered a bit at Fugaku's monotone, even at the mention of someone's death. But he nodded his head and held in his sigh. "Hai."

"Tell Tsume. I'll meet you there." Fugaku only said before he turned around and left the house. Minato hung his head a bit and sighed deeply when the Uchiha left. He looked up when he felt a light touch on his shoulders.

"Are you really going to go?" Yumi asked sadly, surprising Minato when she didn't whisper that time. Minato frowned a bit when he saw the hopeful look in the girl's eyes.

"... No. I don't want Kushina-san to move around." He grinned a bit and looked over at Yumi. "We'll keep you company, Yumi-san."

Yumi blinked at the formal speech, but smiled and her eyes sparkled, making Minato grin wider.

* * *

_Kushina looked around warily, her shoulders already rising and falling in light, crisp pants. She took one last glimpse over her shoulder, before she turned her head to the front and lurched forward into a run. The darkness around her melted into a scene, and her eyes narrowed. Buildings were on fire and a light drizzle, clearly too weak to put out the flames, was coming down on the small village. Kushina shook her head, hesitantly backing up and looking around for her Konoha friends. No one. Just bodies lying around, most of them clearly dead while a few stray ones rasped in a struggle to breathe and stay alive. The kunoichi looked up when Fuuma-clan shuriken came flying at her, and she quickly crossed her arms in front of her to block it, only to find that they went right through her._

_"...?" Kushina turned to look back and instantly regretted doing so. A man, most likely in his forties and much too familiar to Kushina, lay sprawled on the ground, the weapons that went through Kushina impaled in his limbs and pinning him to the ground. A kunai suddenly shot through the air and Kushina's hands immediately flew to her mouth. She backed up when her father's yells echoed, creating a loud ringing in her ears. Kushina continued to back up, horror-struck eyes looking around wildly when more shinobi appeared, each of them falling one by one. She continued to back up, until she felt her shoulders hit something. Kushina hesitantly looked over her shoulder, her eyes narrowed as the shinobi she bumped into raised his arm over his head, a kunai in his grasp. Kushina barely had time to turn around before the shinobi brought down the kunai..._

Kushina woke up screaming and drenched in sweat, panting lightly as she looked around. Minato jumped awake when Kushina first began screaming, already by her side as he stared at her with concern flooding his eyes.

"Kushina-san! Are you okay?" He questioned. Kushina stared at him with her eyes still widened, panting a bit before her eyes slowly closed.

"Gonna hurl..."

"Yumi-chan..." Minato looked over at the girl, who was already running to bring a spare bucket to Kushina. The kunoichi immediately took it into her gloved hands, dipping her head as she spewed out whatever was in her stomach and into the bucket. Minato grimaced and made sure he didn't look, but shifting and pulling her hair back a bit. Yumi rubbed Kushina's back, squeezing her eyes shut when the sickening coughs were still audible. Kushina coughed a couple of more times, spitting the remaining bits out of her mouth and into the bucket.

"Are you feeling better?" Minato asked, hesitantly taking the bucket away from her. Yumi offered to take the bucket, being sure to hold her breath and not look as she took the barf bucket out of the hut to dispose and clean. Kushina groaned a bit and grimaced. Minato released her hair and allowed it to fall to her shoulders, turning his head to look for the bucket of water Hiroshi had provided a several hours earlier. He pulled the bucket closed to the kunoichi.

"Here... Wash your mouth out..." He murmured.

Kushina looked down at the bucket, before she shakily took it and raised it to her lips, tilting it slightly so she could drink the clean water. She swished the liquid in her mouth a bit, grimacing as she swallowed it, before she took another long drink to wash the disgusting taste out of her mouth. Kushina handed the bucket back to Minato and groaned, wiping her mouth with her arm and raising her hand to rub her head, only to discover that her hitai-ate was missing. She only regarded this and tiredly looked at Minato when she saw he was the only one, besides another small boy across the room, was in the hut.

"Where are we...?"

"In Yumi-chan and Hiroshi-kun's home..." Minato murmured. "You passed out and they offered to let you stay here..." He explained to her. Kushina groaned and crossed her legs, continuing to rub her head.

"But are you okay, Kushina-san...? I mean you woke up screaming..." Minato questioned, and Kushina could clearly tell how worried he was.

"Nightmare..." Kushina only murmured, dodging the question by a bit. "How long was I out, 'tebayo?"

Minato took a few moments to think for a bit. "... Probably four hours or five." He replied after a pause. Kushina's eyes widened and she looked at him.

"Four hours?" She repeated, and Minato nodded. Kushina frowned and scrambled to get to her feet, but Minato was much more quicker, placing a hand on her shoulder and forcing her to sit down.

"It's late, Kushina-san... Tomorrow." He murmured. Kushina bit her lip, but suddenly realized how dizzy she was and groaned. She leaned back and flopped against the makeshift bed. Kushina turned her head when Yumi returned with the bucket cleaned out. Hiroshi was already curled up and sleeping again on the layered woven mats.

"... You're Yumi, right?" Kushina questioned softly. Yumi nodded and placed the empty bucket over in one corner of the hut. "Thanks." Yumi only shook her head.

"It's okay..." She whispered. Minato looked at the young girl, wondering if she was whispering because she still wasn't familiar with Kushina, or if she didn't want to wake up Hiroshi. Probably the second reason, Minato figured. Kushina rose a brow at the girl, before she shook her head, watching as Yumi slowly trailed over to lay down on the mats next to Hiroshi. Kushina then blinked and realized that she was laying on the mat with the pile of hay beneath it.

"You two can sleep here, dattebayo..." Kushina offered as she sat up. Yumi just put her index finger to her lips, shaking her head as she curled up beside Hiroshi. Kushina frowned reluctantly, before looking around the room and back at Minato.

"Where's Tsume? And Kuromaru? ... And Fugaku-_taichou_?" Kushina gritted her teeth at the last part, clearly not use to calling anyone 'Captain'. Minato shifted a bit, crossing his legs to sit and make himself comfortable.

"They're staying at a bigger hut that Tamura-san offered to us... I didn't want to move you until you woke up..." Minato murmured. "You can go if you want... I'll be staying here."

Kushina blinked slightly, turning around to face him, her own legs crossing as well. "Why are you going to stay here?" She questioned softly, remembering that Yumi and Hiroshi were sleeping. Minato turned his head to look at the said kids, and Kushina followed his line of gaze. "..."

"Their parents were killed from one of the recent rogue attacks." Minato whispered lightly, hoping that Yumi wasn't actually awake and listening. "I want to keep them company..." Kushina flinched at the explanation, still continuing to stare at the small children. She rubbed her temple a bit, sighing.

"... Then I'll stay with you, 'tebayo."

Minato blinked at this. He inwardly thanked that it was already night, and that the moonlight was too weak to show the blush that rose to his cheeks. "You don't have to..."

"In case you forgot, I lost my parents too, you know." Kushina growled, but remembered to keep her voice low. "In fact, I even had a nightmare about my dad dying in front of me!" Minato flinched at this, and Kushina mimicked it. _Crap._

"... I'm sorry..." Minato murmured. Kushina groaned softly and unfolded her legs, leaning back to lay on the makeshift bed again. She rested her arm over her eyes. "... I bet you want to know about my brother?" Kushina guessed. Minato looked up at her before he nodded slowly.

"If you don't mind..."

Kushina sighed from where she was, keeping her eyes hidden with her arm. "He's not actually my brother... Well, he is, but not by blood..."

"What do you mean?" Minato questioned, clearly confused.

"My real brother married his sister. So brother-by-law. But we never really called him that. We were already good friends, especially with my real brother..." Kushina sighed a bit. "I'm gonna vent to you... Is that alright? Since Sae isn't here, 'tebayo..."

Minato blinked at this, but his shoulders dropped and he relaxed a bit. "I don't mind... Don't keep everything bottled up."

"Yeah." Kushina exhaled another sigh and clutched the mat with her free hand. "My brother, Mizuiro... He and Suzu were only eighteen when they got engaged. But they really did love each other..." Minato looked down and could feel the heat rising to his face at the L-word. Kushina never noticed and just continued on. "Mizu-nii and Da-nii were so psyched about becoming brothers... Not like they weren't already... we were all pretty excited about it. Like, jump off the table and wrestle with each other kind of excited..."

Minato continued to listen to Kushina as the words kept tumbling out of her mouth, watching her bite her lip and fight the choking sobs that were beginning to rise.

"And would you believe it?" Kushina's voice broke at that sentence, but she still continued, lightly sniffing a bit. "Exactly two weeks before Mizu-nii and Suzu-nee got married, Uzu was destroyed..." Her voice broke once more, before she finally broke down and sobbed quietly, still considering the younger kids inside the hut. More than badly did Minato want to hug her, to comfort her. Instead, he made sure not to make her too uncomfortable, and reached out to wipe away a few of the stray tears that managed to roll past her arm. Kushina froze at this, but slowly calmed and bit her lip to try and stop.

"You can keep crying, Kushina..." Minato murmured softly as he pulled his hand back onto his lap. "It's all right..."

Kushina kept biting her lip, but sobbed heavily a couple of more times before a soft whine escaped her. This process continued, before she slowly calmed a bit, her breathing evening out but with the occasional hiccups. Minato continued to stare at her with eyes soft in concern, clearly noting the small smile on her face.

"My brother's alive... Daylian-nii-san is alive..."

* * *

Blue eyes slowly flickered open, before squinting against the sunlight. Minato groaned inaudible and shifted to stretch from where he sat. He then raised his hand to his eyes to shield out the sunlight that came from the hole- or the "window". Minato groaned and got up to stretch. Note to self: Never sleep sitting up again. He shook his head a couple of times, before he remember Kushina and turned to look at her. She was still asleep, resting on her side with her left arm tucked under her head in a pillow. Her right arm just lay limply by her stomach and chest. Minato stared at her for several moments, before he rubbed his nose a bit in embarrassment, his face already turning red. And so darn early in the morning, too.

Unconsciously, his gaze slowly trailed over to her. She wasn't as pale as she was the previous day, though her cheeks were stained with dried tears. Minato sighed in relief, before he dozed and recalled what happened last night. That only deepened his blush, and he shook his head to try and focus on something else. He looked around, only to find that Yumi and Hiroshi weren't there. Their mats were folded neatly in a small pile, stored beneath the stack of barrels in the corner of the room. Minato itched to go look for them, but he didn't want to be gone when Kushina woke up. And knowing her- if she was back to her old self -she would get mad at him for leaving her in a village she didn't know about.

He sighed lightly, but smiled softly at the thought of being able to keep Kushina company as well as Yumi and Hiroshi. Minato raised his arms to stretch, stifling some light groans when he heard his limbs crack. "Ite..."

Minato exhaled a deep breath as he lowered his arms back down to his sides, before his hand immediately moved up to cover his stomach after a light growl. _Gehhh... How long has it been since I ate? As soon as we get back to Konoha, I'm going to Ichiraku's..._ He grinned at the thought, but then it slowly faded. That would mean leaving Yumi and Hiroshi...

Minato shook his head. _No... After we deal with the rogues, things should go a lot more smoothly... Maybe I'll even talk to Tamura-san and see if he or another villager can take care of them..._ He looked at the entrance, as if expecting the small children to walk through it. Nothing. Minato sighed. Where were they?

He jumped a bit when he felt Kushina stirring. He calmed himself and turned his head to stare at her. Kushina groaned a bit before her right hand pushed her upright. Kushina drowsily opened her eyes and looked around a bit, as if trying to remember where she was. She caught sight of Minato then rubbed her eye, sitting up completely but slouching.

"'hayo, 'tebayo."

"Ohayo, Kushina-san." Minato replied back. Kushina sighed a bit and got to her feet, her fingers running through her messy hair to straighten it.

"Where's my hitai-ate...?" She grumbled, still clearly drowsy as she leaned against the wall for support. Minato blinked then fumbled around for a bit, before he remembered where he put it and reached into the weapon pouch on his lower back. The blond Chuunin then handed her the folded headband, and she grumbled a thanks as she put it on, continuing to fix her hair a bit.

"Oh... Here's some water to wash your faces..." Yumi's familiar whisper filled the silent room. Minato and Kushina both turned their heads in unison toward the entrance, and surely enough Yumi was standing there carrying a bucket with both hands. Hiroshi slipped through moments later, carrying a armful of apples in his arms with difficulty. He already bit into one, and it was in his mouth while he tried to hand the fruit to the ninja. Minato took a couple of them to relieve Hiroshi, smiling lightly.

"Arigatou..." He murmured. Hiroshi nodded, the apple bobbing up and down with his head. With one of his arms now free, Hiroshi took the apple out of his mouth and properly bit into it, while Yumi approached Kushina with the bucket of water. Kushina murmured her own thanks and stepped off the bed, using her feet to sweep some of the hay back into place. The kunoichi lowered onto her knees and washed her face a bit, clearly not minding that she was soaking the front of her hitai-ate.

"We really can't thank you two enough.." Minato murmured after he swallowed his mouthful. "Giving us a place to stay..."

Yumi blinked at the plural forms in the sentence, turning to look at Kushina. The kunoichi wiped her face with the bottom of her shirt, looking up and nodding a bit.

"You let me stay here when I passed out... The least I can do is stay here with blondy." Kushina grinned slightly and glanced over at Minato. She looked back to Yumi before she saw Minato's face flush lightly. "And we'll kick those rogues butts, 'tebayo!"

Yumi blinked again, but then smiled lightly and nodded. Then her smile eventually grew larger. "Arigatou...!"

Minato smiled lightly when Yumi didn't whisper this time, before he polished off the rest of the apple and held the core with his fingertips. He didn't want to admit that he was still hungry, but the younger kids clearly needed more food than he did. Hiroshi was already working on eating the last half of his second apple, while Yumi timidly bit into hers. Kushina happily accepted one from Hiroshi, already beginning to wolf down on the fruit hungrily. Minato grinned in amusement. He looked over at the window, then he walked over to the wall to pick up his sword by the rope.

"Gomen, Yumi-chan, Hiroshi-kun... We have to go meet with our team and figure out what to do from here..." He murmured. Kushina blinked when she bit into a second apple, before she nodded and got up, brushing herself off a bit. Yumi looked a bit disappointed, but nodded. Hiroshi was too busy eating his breakfast. Kushina waved a thanks to the children and followed Minato out the door, still biting into the apple.

"I hope apples aren't the only things they eat..." Kushina growled as she bit off the last part, looking for someplace to discard the cores. "Though I wouldn't be surprised if they did... I mean they're real skinny, 'tebayo..." Minato nodded when she pointed out the facts, before he tossed the apple core he had into a small, weakly wired trash bin. Kushina saw this and easily tossed the cores one by one, making them in and grinning at herself.

"So where's Tsume guys?" She asked. Minato shrugged lightly, blue eyes averting back to the front to search for the house that Fugaku had described the previous day. They walked along the edge of the small village, until a hut, much larger than the regular huts the commoners lived in, caught his attention. Minato motioned toward it and lead Kushina.

"I think that's it..."

"Yup, it is." To prove Minato right, Kuromaru and Tsume peered out from the neatly woven mat, Tsume holding it aside as she grinned lightly.

"Ne, Kushina. Feeling better?"

Kushina nodded a bit, but then she remembered the reason why she passed out to begin with. She frowned lightly and she slowly approached the hut with Minato. "Where's Tamura?" She asked. Kuromaru stepped out of the hut, the mat brushing against his hackles.

"Tamura-san was walking around the village earlier... He didn't seem to be in a hurry, so it sounds like he's finished up..." The black and gray ninken replied. Kushina's mouth twitched a bit, and she whirled around to run back in the direction they came from.

"Ahh, Kushina-san!" Minato sighed and quickly spun on his heels, darting after her. Kuromaru inwardly snorted at this, but backed up to retreat in the hut. Tsume shook her head.

"I'd go with, but I ain't going anywhere near that place until they properly wash away all the blood..." The Inuzuka kunoichi growled as she slipped back into the hut, letting the woven mat fall over the door again. Kuromaru just pushed it opened with his nose and followed his human partner.

* * *

Kushina's gaze flickered to and fro, from house to house, as she tried to remember which one her brother was in. She was completely oblivious of Minato until he caught up to her, running along side in pace.

"Kushina-san, calm down...!" Minato called to her. Kushina looked at him, her eyes still narrowed. But she slowed to a stop, only because they were at the hut, Minato realized. Kushina stood a few feet in front of the doorway, staring at it as she shook slightly. She never did ask Kuromaru what Tamura's expression was as he walked around... Was he walking around because her brother was already dead? Kushina continued to shiver. She then turned her head to look at Minato when he placed a hand on her shoulder. He gave her a reassured look, before he gently pushed her forward. Kushina nearly stumbled over her own feet, but kept her gaze on the door.

Kushina pushed the mat aside hesitantly, and she could literally feel her heart pounding against her rib cage. Tamura was the first person she saw, and her eyes narrowed when she saw the vacant stone bench. The client of the mission turned to look at her, already beginning to clean up the blood with some alcoholic liquid.

"Ah, Uzumaki-san..."

"Where's...?" Kushina hesitantly took a step forward, before she realized her surrounds and sensed another person in the room. She slowly turned her head, and indeed he was sitting against the wall, his arms and legs crossed while he weakly smirked.

"'Uzumaki'? Is that what you call yourself now, 'Shina?" He asked, still smirking. Kushina's mouth slowly dropped open, before it formed into a glad and relieved smile.

"Daylian-nii-san!" She cried rather loudly. She was about to go and maybe tackle hug him, but he held up a hand for her to stop.

"As much as I'd love to pin you down again, I'm still healin'." Daylian murmured as he lowered his hand back to his lap. Only then did Kushina realize how bandaged up he was. His forehead was bandaged tightly, though most of his black bangs covered it up. His stomach and torso was tightly bandaged, while a stark black jacket cloaked his shoulders. His pale face made his odd, violet colored eyes stand out.

Kushina hesitantly nodded, but approached him slowly and reached out with her hand, curling it into a fist slowly. Daylian blinked, but he grinned and raised own hand, wrist bandaged, and curled his fingers into a fist to bump knuckles with her.

"I'm real, 'Shina." Daylian said as he continued to grin, as if reading her mind. Kushina bit her lip, and Daylian's face dropped.

"What, you're not going to start crying on me, are you?" He questioned, Gasper. Kushina shook her head, but despite that she wiped her eyes with the back of her gloved hands. Daylian blinked when he noticed this.

"... Did you steal those from Mizuiro?" Daylian asked again, his joking tone going with the smirk that followed. Kushina threw out her lower lip and folded her arms crossly.

"He _gave_ them to me, Da-nii... before he..." Kushina looked away and bit her lip. She blinked, then looked back at him when she thought of something.

"Did you escape with anyone else...?"

Daylian's cheerful expression dropped at the question. "No... I was hoping you did, but Tamura told me that you came with the Konoha platoon so..." He shook his head and exhaled a sigh. Kushina mimicked the sigh.

"... So are you going to introduce me to mister yellow?" Daylian folded his arms, being careful not to touch his healing wounds. Kushina rose a brow and blinked, then turned around when she heard Minato laugh nervously. Kushina's mouth opened in an "oh" and stepped aside so the two could properly see each other.

"Daylian-nii, that's blondy. Blondy, Daylian-nii, 'tebayo."

"Nice to meetcha, blondy." Daylian snorted a bit. Minato rubbed the back of his neck, clearly embarrassed.

"Namikaze Minato, desu." Minato introduced. Daylian snorted once more than laughed.

"'Namikaze'? You're too polite for a title like that. But whatever. Nice to meetcha, Minato." Daylian extended a bandaged fist toward Minato. The blond Chuunin blinked at this, looking over to Kushina. The kunoichi just nodded her head in Daylian's direction. But before Minato could raise his fist, Daylian scoffed.

"I'm offended! Back in Uzu it was considered rude if you didn't bump knuckles immediately!" The Uzu nin folded his arms and threw out his lower lip in a scowl. Minato blinked, a bit dumbfounded, but opened his mouth to apologize. He was interrupted again when Daylian burst out laughing, unable to keep his face straight.

"Ha! You're funny, Minato. I'm just yanking your leg." He explained between snickers. Kushina grinned a bit, raising her gloved hands to hide the grin and keep herself from laughing with Daylian. Daylian continued to snicker a but held out his fist again. Minato instantly raised his arm, fingers curled into fists as he hit his knuckles against Daylian's. The Uzu nin's grin widened.

"There, that wasn't so hard, was it? But still, you're a cool guy."

Minato blinked once more, before he grinned and nodded. Daylian nodded back, before he used the same fist to motion toward the door.

"Can we help you?"

Kushina looked dumbfounded, turning to look at the door to find Fugaku standing there. Minato just glimpsed over his shoulder then turned around, clearly not surprised like Kushina was. Fugaku only regarded his two teammates and entered the room, not even pausing when Minato shifted aside for him. The Uchiha stood before Daylian, surveying him. Daylian's grin faded into a blank expression, before it turned into a frown.

"Can I help you?" Daylian asked again. Fugaku dipped his head once in a nod.

"Are you able to move, or should we discuss things in here?"

"Well let's find out." Daylian shrugged as he jumped to his feet nimbly without the use of his hands, much to Minato's surprise. Fugaku seemed a bit surprised, but only showed it by raising a brow. Daylian craned his neck a bit, before he stretched his legs a bit.

"Mm... I'm pretty good, mister Uchiha." Daylian said in a slight mock tone, looking down at the Uchiha. Though he barely had to look down much- Fugaku's eye level was nearly even with Daylian's. "I take it you're the leader, since you're among the great Uchiha?" Daylian questioned with a slight sneer, voice dripping with sarcasm. Fugaku only regarded this and turned around to walk back toward the door.

"Then let's return to the larger hut. We need to discuss the rogues."

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **I'm sorry of most of you don't speak Japanese... x.x 'Gomen(asai)' means '(I'm) sorry'... 'Ite' means like 'ow'... Ohayo - Good morning. Ect., etc..

Squee! This chapter's for you, Jadre-danna:D ('cuz Daylian belongs to her.) I think I've made him too cheerful. o-o'  
So I wanted to answer one of the questions in the reviews- I'm afraid it's impossible for me to state when I'll be updating fanfics. I normally update once or twice a month, depending on how bored I am and if I'm inspired. But I can't just state the date of the updates (lul rhymes). As much as I'd love to be one, the manga-ka's schedule is impossible for me to meet. I have school, friends, a life in general, you know? Plus I don't want to risk becoming an insomniac like most manga-ka are. x.x'

But thank you for the reviews- as usual! Wow... Seven chapters and thirty-six reviews. I'm amazed! O:


	9. Whispers In The Dark

**Chapter IX: Whispers In The Dark**

"... Daylian-san, I'm being serious." Fugaku growled through his teeth, his patience with the injured Uzu nin finally wavering. His arms were folded across his chest and his fingers drummed impatiently against his own arms while he sat across from Daylian. The Uzu nin just snorted, folding his own arms across his bandaged chest.

"So am I, frankly enough."

"... Che." Fugaku gritted his teeth and sneered slightly, before he opened his eyes and returned daggers at Daylian. "Then describe the rogues to us again." He growled.

Daylian snorted and uncrossed his arms, raising them to his face to pull the corners of his eyes a bit so they appeared small. Daylian then used his pinky to pull the corner of his mouth back into an odd sneer. "Kinda like thiff..."

Tsume stifled her snickers the best she could, covering her mouth with her hand. But as soon as Fugaku looked at her, she dropped her hand and hardened her expression over. Kushina, who stood beside the other kunoichi, kept laughing despite Fugaku glaring at her. Minato only smirked lightly, keeping his chuckles to himself. Fugaku snapped his head back towards Daylian, growling this time and anger clearly written on his face. Daylian lowered his arms and slipped them over his chest, folding them while he smirked smugly in response to the Uchiha.

"... I'm serious, though." Daylian snorted from where he sat cross-legged. Fugaku frowned, before he regained his composure and erased his angered expression. Daylian frowned at this.

"... Continue, then." Fugaku muttered, the only visible evidence that he was annoyed. Daylian's smirk returned, though it wasn't as big as the previous one.

"Okay, so one of them had a long line o' stitches right here..." Daylian ran his index finger down the side of his face, the eye on the same side of his face squinting slightly. "And he had a funny eye like this."

Kushina stopped herself from laughing, trying to pull a serious expression as she watched her brother describe the rogues one by one. Of course, Fugaku always had to remind him to not fool around and properly describe their physical appearance as well as any weapons they carried. Despite Fugaku's warnings, Daylian would always describe the rogues in a childish manner, just to annoy the Uchiha. Kushina snorted and smirked smugly whenever Fugaku's emotionless facade slipped for a few moments. This process carried on for a good amount of time, until Daylian leaned back with a tired sigh, turning his head to look at Tamura, whom was standing silently in one of the corners of the large hut.

"Ne... Tamura. I think I need some more medicine... Everything's startin' to sting again." Daylian grumbled wearily, flinching when he placed a hand on his stomach. Kushina looked concerned at this, her gaze immediately snapping over to Tamura. Just in time to see the young doctor scurry over to the injured ninja, pulling out a small bottle and pulling the cork out. Both Daylian and Kushina grimaced at the aroma that drifted from the bottle, while Kuromaru and Tsume gagged a bit. Daylian hesitantly took the bottle and gingerly drank it down, pausing every now and then and coughing. Tamura frowned a bit, which was an unusual expression to the Konoha nin, and tipped the bottle so that Daylian properly downed all the contents.

When the bottle was removed, Daylian dramatically clutched his throat and gasped, coughing a couple of times. But in a more serious tone, he looked at Tamura. "Crazy man..."

"I'm only doing my job." Tamura murmured in response, capping the bottle and storing it into the small medical bag he carried.

Fugaku only regarded the scene by shaking his head, shifting and standing up with a small grunt escaping him. He brushed the dirt off his Uchiha attire, then steadily stared down at Daylian. "Thank you for your cooperation." Fugaku couldn't stop himself from sneering at the last word. Daylian just frowned and got to his feet, flinching a bit. He grumbled and slipped past the Chuunins, Tamura following closely behind. Fugaku's onyx gaze followed Daylian, until they shifted over to Minato.

"Namikaze... tonight you take the first watch."

"Hai..." Minato murmured.

Kushina shifted a bit, before she quickly spun around and followed her brother out the door without waiting for any further instructions from Fugaku. Minato looked over his shoulder at this, half tempted to follow her, but remembered his place and returned his attention back to Fugaku. The Uchiha growled a bit, but turned his gaze over to Minato.

"Tell her that she takes the second shift. Inuzuka, you take the third and I'll be on the final watch until dawn." Fugaku ordered. "And tell Uzumaki that we're going to scout around the village for any rogue activities, so she better not hang around Daylian-san. We're still on a mission."

Minato hesitantly nodded at this, before he turned around and slipped out the door, the mat falling back into place behind him. He took a few big strides and soon caught up with Tamura, whom was murmuring small warnings to the injured Uzu nin ahead of him.

"Yeah yeah." Daylian growled over his shoulder, before he returned his attention back down to Kushina whom walked along side of him. Tamura shook his head and sigh, turning his head to catch Minato's glance. The blond Chuunin just dipped his head in a nod and then quickened his pace slightly so that he was a footstep behind Kushina.

"Kushina-san..."

"Nn?" Kushina spun around and walked back wards, folding her arms behind her head. "What is it? Fugaku-taichou mad at me for ditching?"

"No. Err, sorta. We're all going to scout around the area in a bit. And he said that you have the second watch." Minato murmured. Kushina only rolled her eyes and snorted a bit.

"Maaan..." She whined. Daylian shook his head and just patted her on the head with his bandaged hand.

"Hey, hey. You're on a mission, aren't'cha?"

"That's exactly what Fugaku-taichou said..." Minato muttered to himself, though Daylian seemed to catch this since he halted in his tracks. Minato blinked and halted his own walking as well, tilting his head slightly to look up at him.

"Daylian-san...?"

"Crap." The injured man only hissed before he continued his strides. "I can't believe I said something that an Uchiha said..." He grumbled. Kushina shrugged and glimpsed back at him, continuing to walk back wards casually. Minato continued to follow as well. _He has a problem with Uchihas...? _

Kushina only regarded all of this, rolling her eyes again before she glued her gaze to the sky. The gray clouds covered the sky like a blanket, only adding onto the chilling air. Tamura shifted a bit and followed her line of gaze.

"It seems like it'll start snowing in a matter of weeks or so..." Tamura murmured to himself. "Though I'm not sure... the leaves haven't completely changed colors yet."

Kushina shrugged again, before she lowered her gaze back down to Minato. "So when are we leaving?" She questioned boredly. Minato shrugged a bit as well, making his sword go up and down with his shoulder.

"I'm not sure... Probably real soon. We should probably head back to the group." Minato murmured. Kushina groaned a bit, before she looked over at Daylian. The Uzu nin just halted in front of the hut he was occupying, turning his head to gaze down at her.

"What? It's just a quick scouting. Nothing life-threatening." Daylian rolled his eyes. "And with Tamura around, I'm sure I can't do anything dangerous like oh, I dunno. Twirl a kunai and maybe accidentally stab myself in the eye." He rolled his eyes again at his own sarcasm. Kushina tensed at this, her eyes narrowing at the thought.

"Don't!!"

"Whoa there, I was just kiddin'." Daylian grumbled. Tamura sighed and tugged on Daylian's arm and towards the hut. "You need to rest now, Daylian-san... The medicine'll knock you out any minute now..." Daylian snapped his head towards the mission client.

"That shit is going to knock me out?!" He practically yelled. That caused the pain in his stomach to come back despite the medicine, making Daylian flinched and stifle a groan.

"Stop yelling already, dattebayo!" Kushina cried, gently pushing him towards the hut. "Get some rest..!"

"Yeah, yeah... I'll go do that..." Daylian grumbled as he got both pulled and pushed into the hut. Kushina backed into the street again, exhaling a deep sigh. Minato approached her, his blue gaze flickering over to the hut for a few brief moments.

"You're really concerned for him, aren't you?" Minato couldn't help but question. Kushina sighed again and lowered her gaze down wards, staring at her zori-covered feet.

"I just... don't want to lose him. He's the only family I have left..." Kushina confessed, grumbling. Minato had to keep reminding himself that Kushina and Daylian were siblings by law. He had a hard time remembering, though, considering that they looked nothing alike. Minato shook his head and diminished that thought, looking up to find Kushina staring at him. He could feel his face turning red when their eyes met, so he quickly turned around to hide it.

"We should go back..." He murmured. Kushina blinked from where she stood, before she nodded and followed him when he began walking, soon falling into pace with him. Minato kept his head lowered a bit in an embarrassed manner, his blue gaze flickering over to her before a small smile crossed his face.

* * *

"These guys are rather sloppy." Minato murmured as he paused in front of another set of sliced foliage. He examined how the vines and leaves were slit, then stared down at the footsteps that were messily left behind in the grass and bushes. He shook his head and pressed forward, Kuromaru trotting along side of him and sniffing the air, while the rest of the group trailed behind while their own eyes searched for more obvious trails. Minato couldn't help but roll his eyes in response to all the trails. He didn't want to sound like he thought he was superior than everyone else, but could the rogues be anymore _obvious_? It's like they might as well just have put up a huge sign saying 'We're over here!!'... If they were dumb enough to leave such tracks then dealing with them would be cake.

Kuromaru halted suddenly, and Minato stiffened and looked down at him. The Ninken sniffed the air a couple of times, his gaze flickering around the area that was visible before them.

"About another half a mile west of here, they're camping out." Kuromaru and Tsume both spoke in unison. Kushina and Minato both looked at the Inuzuka pair, while Fugaku nodded from where he brought up the rear.

"Let's go." Fugaku murmured before he blurred out of sight in a shunshin. Minato instantly followed, while the remaining three swiftly followed.

Kushina inhaled deeply to get a good amount of the rain-scented terrain. She exhaled a bit and then grinned a bit as she followed the rest of the group, clearly enjoying the fresh scent. Things have been going in a good turn out for her... The first major thing was that her brother was alive and healing. Now she would be able to maybe punch a few dumb rogues around to relieve any anger buried within her. Yup, that was a pretty excellent turn of events for her, considering that her village was wiped out. Oh, and she made some friends who were girls and didn't care for the fact that she acted like a boy. Kushina inwardly grinned a bit, but was snapped out of her thoughts when she collided into Tsume's back, nearly starting a whole domino thing with the platoon.

"Whoa there..." Tsume murmured once she regained her footing. Kushina muttered quick apologies, while Kuromaru was stifling his laughter.

"Shh." Fugaku only hissed through his teeth, glaring over his shoulder. Kushina had to admit the glare effected her when Daylian wasn't around, so she flinched a bit and shrunk back. Fugaku regarded this and returned his attention to the front, motioning with his hand to the small trail ahead of them.

Smoke was now scented in the air, and it made Kushina scowl since she was enjoying the fresh-air smell. Though she had to focus on the mission now. The smoke indicated the rogues' camp.

"Namikaze."

"Hai." Minato just murmured, his hand slowly raising to the hilt of his sword before he swiftly blurred out of sight. Kushina tensed slightly, but then she flinched suddenly. She instantly jerked around to look back in the direction of the village, eyes narrowed.

"What is it, Uzumaki?" Fugaku growled from where he waited for Minato. Kushina gritted her teeth and clenched her fists.

"The village is being attacked...! _Now_!!" She snarled. Without stopping to explain, the kunoichi shot back in the direction of the village, right when Minato blurred back into sight.

"The rogues camp is empty..!"

Fugaku scowled darkly at this, while Kuromaru snarled.

"The smoke's scent must've covered up their recent trail!!" The Ninken barked, before he spun around to dart after Kushina. Tsume gritted her teeth and followed her companion, while Minato and Fugaku quickly shot after the rest of the group. Kushina jumped over a few lines of bushes, a kunai drawn to hack away at the walls of foliage that stood in her path. Despite her focus on getting to the Saiwaichou Mura, Kushina could feel the other chakra bursts of her teammates approaching. Minato was the first to catch up, naturally, flickering in Shunshins beside her.

"How do you know the rogues are attacking...?"

"Before we left, I snuck a bunshin to guard the village, datte'sa." Kushina growled. Her upper lip raised a bit in a sneer. "Stupid Fugaku didn't think about leaving one of us behind to guard the village in case the rogues attacked... And if I suddenly see a rogue attacking me, then there's no doubt that my bunshin was killed..."

Minato's eyes narrowed, before he looked back at the Uchiha who followed a few yards behind. Kushina did raise a point... Fugaku nor the rest of them thought of leaving a guard at the village in case of an ambush... What a way for Kushina to think. Minato turned his head back to the front and bit his lip.

"I'm going to go ahead..." He murmured. Once he took another step, he lowered a bit then immediately shot forward in an amazing burst of speed, leaving Kushina slightly dumbfounded. But she shook her head and darted forward, increasing the flow of chakra to her feet to further her speed. Adrenaline began to gush through her veins, and she shivered with both anticipation and fear.

Because she had left her bunshin to guard Daylian's hut.

* * *

It was a mess when Minato arrived in the Saiwaichou Mura. The villagers were screaming to escape while the wave of rogues smashed through their weakened homes, weapons being brought out to steal lives. Some huts were already collapsed, and Minato shivered. _Is this similar to what Kushina went through...?_ He thought grimly, before the blond Chuunin shot forward and drew his sword, taking a final leap off the tree branch. Minato shot at the nearest rogue, slashing at the bulky man's shoulder to stop him from bringing his spiked club down on some dusty and crying children. The rogue shrieked and dropped his weapon, clutching his bloody shoulder and glaring at Minato. The Chuunin glared back darkly, pointing the tip of his weighted sword to the taller man's throat.

"Get lost... You've lost the use of your arm..." He hissed through his teeth, before he swiftly used a Shunshin to appear by the terrorized children, yanking them to their feet and pulling them into yet another Shunshin. Minato quickly released the children's arms once he was in the outskirts of the village.

"Run!"

The children didn't have to be told twice, immediately getting to their feet and scurrying further away from the village. Shortly after, Minato spun around and darted back in the direction of the village, blue eyes narrowed as he drew his sword down on another rogue's weapon, slitting the wooden club in half right when the rogue was about to bring it down. The rogue looked dumbfounded when he saw half his weapon gone, turning around only to be greeted with the butt of a sword hilt slamming into his chest. All that just happened gave enough time for the terrorized villager to escape. The rogue backed up and growled, wheezing to regain the breath that he lost. Minato parted his feet a bit to prepare himself for when the rogue lurched forward to attack. The blond Chuunin jumped and lightly used the rogue's arm as levering, bringing his sword down on the rogue's shoulder before Minato used a Shunshin to move onto the next rogue.

Wails were audible all around- mostly from the villagers. To be honest, it made Minato a tad lightheaded. When were the others going to get here...? Minato continued to attack rogues one by one, and the iron-tinge scent of blood began to hover lightly in the air. That's when it hit Minato.

Why were there so many rogues?!

When he and Kushina were eavesdropping on them, there weren't this many! Maybe only like five or so. How many did Minato deal with just now? At least ten?

Minato gritted his teeth and jumped onto a nearby rooftop, stiffening a bit when the hut nearly collapsed from his sudden weight. He remained frozen until he felt it steady itself, before his blue eyes flickered around the small village.

"...!" _Daylian-san...! Yumi-chan, Hiroshi-kun and Tamura-san..! _

Minato wildly looked around, cursing through his teeth. Where were they? Who did he have to save first?! The Chuunin groaned a bit and held his head in one hand as he felt himself getting dizzy. The pressure... What if one of them was already dead? _What if all four of them were dead?_

"Namikaze!!"

Minato flinched and was instantly brought back to reality. His gaze slowly trailed down to the street, where Fugaku discarded a bloodied kunai. A rogue lay dead at his feet, and the Uchiha didn't at all seem fazed.

"Calm down... In battle, there is no time for panic. Any hesitant and panicked thoughts will get you killed instantly." Fugaku growled, turning his head to look up at the panicking blond. Minato shivered. A pair of Sharingan eyes were staring up at him, piercing through him with such intense blood lust. Minato reeled a bit and nodded, shooting off to get away from the Uchiha.

"Okay... Tamura-san first..." Minato shivered as he landed back on the ground, running through the streets with his speed gradually building up. His instincts kicked in and Minato immediately shot up to stand on another creaky rooftop, watching as a small group of rogues ran through the street. Moments after, Kuromaru and Tsume darted after them, the Inuzuka kunoichi lowered on all fours and snarling in a feral-like manner. Minato watched them for a moment, before he remembered his original objective and turned back in the direction he headed-

Only to get cut off by a high-pitched scream that made his free hand instantly shoot up to his hear in an attempt to block out the sound. Minato's eyes narrowed when a sudden thought struck him. _Was that Yumi-chan?!_

Without giving a second thought, Minato spun around and shot off in the direction he came from, his footsteps light as he traveled over the rooftops and over the villagers whom ran to escape the chaos of the rogue attack.

* * *

The very sight of the village being attacked _terrified_ Kushina. She froze at the first sight of the screaming villagers, and Tsume, Kuromaru and Fugaku just shot past her without stopping to look back at her. Kushina remained frozen there as images of her own village being attacked flashed before her very eyes.

_"Go forward..."_

Kushina stiffened at the light whisper, turning to look around for the source of it, half expecting a rogue to be behind her. No one. Just the empty forest, and the echoes of the villagers screams. Kushina shivered and slowly turned her head back to the front, swallowing most of her fear and darting forward into the chaos. A couple of seconds after she ran, a rogue was already in her line of sight. Kushina's eyes narrowed when she saw that the rogue was towering over a woman holding an infant closely to her chest, her back turned to protect the child. Rage replaced fear and the kunoichi jumped forward, her hands flickering in a small set of seals. Moments later a Bunshin appeared in a poof besides her, both of them snarling as they threw multiple fists at the rogue's head.

The assaulter lurched forward at the first strike, turning around and growling only to get pummeled in the face by several more fists. The real Kushina growled and halted the attack, but made sure the Bunshin kept attacking the rogue. Kushina landed back on the ground, her body lowered as she quickly approached the cowering woman, pulling her to her feet.

"C'mon, you gotta get outta here!!" The kunoichi hissed through her teeth, shoving the woman down the street. The new mother stared at her for a bit, before she nodded and clutched the infant closer, weakly running down the street to escape the invading village. Kushina nodded when she saw this, before she turned to glare back at the rogue. Her Bunshin was still smacking away at the rogue, until the point where her knuckles began to turn red.

_"There's more than one rogue..."_

Both Kushina and her Bunshin stiffened a bit, before the bunshin pushed off the rogue's chest and landed on the ground, watching as the man groaned and landed roughly on his back. Blood trailed from his nose, and there were several forming bruises on his face. The corner of Kushina's mouth twitched, before she spun around and darted down the street that lead deeper into the village, her bunshin swiftly at her heels. Soon enough, another rogue was in sight and the two jumped him, swiftly making due of him by beating the daylights out of him.

This process continued for quite some time, until they paired off with a rogue that had managed to make the bunshin disappear with the rusty katana he bared. Kushina jumped back, her eyes narrowed as she stared at where her bunshin was before it was forced to disappear. The rogue seemed to be accomplished in making the bunshin disappear, before he raised his rusted weapon over his head to bring down on the kunoichi. Kushina, however, reacted quickly and drew a kunai from her holster then blocked the weapon. Seeing the wide opening, Kushina shifted her footing and kicked the rogue in the stomach, making sure he got a gut-full of chakra.

The rogue snarled as he was sent flying back wards, skidding against the dirt and rocks and groaning. He shifted to try and get up, but he lay still after two futile attempts.

Kushina smirked a bit, but a sudden thought occurred to her.

_What about Daylian-nii-san?!_

Kushina cursed to herself. How could she forget her original objective?! Kushina jerked around to shoot off in one direction. She nearly stumbled when she heard a loud, high-pitched scream that rang above all the other yells. Kushina paused and looked around wildly, but only regarded this as she ran towards the hut Daylian was occupying. She found it soon after, and shuddered when she saw that the woven mat was torn off, and the wooden door frame was half-collapsed. Kushina was short enough to pass under it, however, and ran into the hut.

"Daylian-nii!?" Kushina yelled, suddenly horror-struck when she didn't see her brother in the hut. Kushina immediately spun around and darted back into the street, red-brown eyes flickering around wildly in search of a track or _anything_ that would lead her to Daylian. She was, however, cut off in her panicked search.

"Uzumaki! Tsume and Kuromaru have coursed the remaining rogues to one part of the village. We're going to finish them off there." Fugaku growled as he crouched on one nearby rooftop. Kushina's head snapped up in his direction, shuddering lightly when she saw that his eyes were red rather than their normal onyx coloring. But she nodded a bit and followed the Uchiha when he disappeared.

_Please... Please let him be okay...! _Kushina thought desperately as she ran down the street after the mission leader. She looked up to make sure that she was following Fugaku, but the Uchiha shot forward in a large burst of speed suddenly. Kushina growled a bit then picked up the pace to catch up to him. Right when she saw him in the distance again, a large rogue fell to the ground.

Fugaku flicked the bloodied kunai again, Sharingan eyes flickering over to Minato. The blond shivered a bit at the sight of the dead rogue, but looked back over at Yumi and Hiroshi, whom were hugging each other tightly to try and protect themselves. The blond lowered down in front of them.

"Go hide...!"

"Namikaze, we're going to finish off the rogues." Fugaku murmured in a monotone.

Minato looked up, but nodded and got to his feet. He turned to look at Kushina, whom approached moments after. Fugaku glimpsed between the two, before he started running off in one direction again. Kushina shot Yumi and Hiroshi a glance, before she looked over at Minato.

"Go on..." Minato murmured to the children. He returned Kushina's glance for a brief moment, but he turned to follow Fugaku. Kushina followed a couple of paces behind. Kushina growled when the distance between her and the other two was beginning to grow, so she forced some chakra into her feet to make sure she was atleast two steps behind Minato.

Fugaku skidded to a halt suddenly, and Minato slowed beside him. Kushina dug her feet into the ground, sliding a bit before she looked at the others.

"What's...?"

Fugaku just raised his hand in motion for her to silence her self, before he cocked his hand forward to the scene before them.

Kuromaru and Tsume were a couple of yards ahead, a bunch of overgrown rogues standing before the Inuzuka pair. One man stood in the front, looking the most cleanest and regular of the entire rogue group. He wore a regular, easy-moving _hakama _with no shirt, only a large coat hanging off his shoulders. His stomach was bandaged, but only to hold the small sword to his body. Tsume growled as she shifted her footing, narrowed eyes glaring at the group of rogues.

"What are you, a yakuza-wannabe?" She mocked loudly. The leader of the rogues frowned at this, but he snorted and unfolded his arms, running his hand through his oily black hair.

"And just what are _you_? Some hippie dog-wannabe?" He retorted coolly.

Tsume was so close to jumping forward to attack the man, but Kuromaru shifted in front of her to halt the kunoichi from doing so. Fugaku calmly approached the Inuzuka pair, with Minato and Kushina following closely behind.

"Why haven't you started attacking yet, Inuzuka?" Fugaku questioned. Tsume's head snapped over to Fugaku, sending the same glare at him.

"Because they have Tamura-san!!"

Minato could feel the Uchiha stiffen a bit from where he stood beside Fugaku. Blue eyes flickered at the Uchiha for a moment, before he looked back at the group of rogues to find the said client. Surely enough, off to one of the sides, one of the rogues held Tamura by the throat, threatening to crush the smaller man's neck. Tamura was gasping desperately for air, his eyes filled with obvious panic.

The man up in the front smirked at this. "Now just stand aside and let us finish what we started. Otherwise we'll kill this guy."

Minato shifted a bit, and immediately the rogues tensed at his slightest movement. Fugaku shot a glare at the blond in a warning to keep still. Minato returned the frown, though it wasn't as deep as the Uchiha's.

_Fugaku-taichou... I can get Tamura-san._

_Don't be reckless, Namikaze. Just wait for an opening and then I'll get him back._

_I'm fast enough, taichou!! _Minato's glare hardened. Fugaku narrowed his own Sharingan eyes, but didn't say anything to add onto the silent argument.

_I can easily just drop my sword and get him back... Without my sword, I can get Tamura-san back before they even realize it...! _

Kushina and Tsume hesitantly turned their heads at the other two, as if sending the tense air that was emitting from them. Kuromaru kept his eyes on the enemies. Fugaku continued to glare at Minato out of the corners of his eyes, before he slowly turned his head back to the group of rogues, responding a single word silently. Minato's glare lightened at this, before he slowly turned his head and looked back at the rogues as well. The leader at the front smirked a bit.

"Well? Are you going to move aside?"

At the last word, Minato disappeared, his weighted sword dropping heavily to the ground. The leader of the rogues gawked at the sudden disappearance, but he snapped his head back at one of his lackeys, who was howling in pain with his fingers bloodied. He backed up and gripped his wrist tightly, his head thrown back as he continued howling. A second later Minato appeared besides the group of ninja again, Tamura's arm slung over his shoulder to support the doctor.

"... Good job, Namikaze." Fugaku muttered without bothering to look at the blond. Minato only nodded, motioning for Tamura to go into hiding. The client of the mission nodded weakly, panting lightly as he turned and stumbled back into the village. Minato picked up his weapon and slung the sheath onto his back, just as Tsume snarled a war cry and darted forward with Kuromaru in step with her. Fugaku didn't stop her, but instead lurched forward to follow in the charge. Kushina took a moment to crack her knuckles and dart forward as well. Minato shivered a bit, but he drew his weapon used a Shunshin to follow the group.

The rogues all scattered a bit, taking turns in trying to attack the ninja. The leader of the rogues just slunk into the back lines to watch the battle. Kushina saw this and made a move to follow the leader, but was immediately stopped when a rogue managed to kick her in the stomach. The wind was knocked out of her and caused the kunoichi to reel, stumbling back wards as she held her stomach and coughed to inhale the air that was lost. Minato turned when he heard the air leave her stomach, before his blue eyes narrowed.

"Kushina-san, behind you!!"

Kushina heard his warning and turned to look over her shoulder. A rogue was towering over her, his arm already halfway down to bring a weapon down on her head. Minato growled and shifted to save her, though the rogue's weapon was slit in half before it could come in contact with Kushina's head. Fugaku scowled darkly at the rogue, before he lurched forward and shoved the very kunai into the man's stomach. Minato froze at the sight, but he remembered what was going on around them and whirled around to slash at another rogue's arm.

Kushina stared at the Uchiha crest on Fugaku's back, before she flinched when Fugaku glared over his shoulder.

"Don't drop your guard in the middle of a battle!!" He growled, before he jumped over the unconscious rogue to assault another. Kushina slowly nodded, but spun around to look for the leader that had slunk off.

_"He's hiding behind a couple of rogues..."_

Kushina frowned and flickered her gaze around the battlefield. She quickly jumped right when a rogue smashed his fist against the ground. Kushina lightly landed on his arm and used it as leverage to fling a roundhouse kick at his face, making sure that she atleast shattered his nose. The rogue yowled and raised his free hand to his face, covering his bloody nose as he flopped onto the ground while rolling around. Kushina snorted and drew a kunai, twirling it by the ring before she seized hold of the handle, darting through some rogues to make way for the leader. She soon spotted sight of him, lurching forward to quicken her pace, gripping the kunai with both hands. The rogue leader seemed to be more experienced in battle than the other rogues, since he swiftly drew his small weapon to block the kunai.

"Hehe... You wanna try me, girlie?" He mocked, his arm quivering under the pressure of blocking the kunai. Kushina's own arm shivered a bit, but she gritted her teeth and spun a bit to kick him. The man shifted as well, easily catching her foot with one hand and twisting it. Kushina bit back a cry, and soon found herself on the ground with a grunt escaping her. She turned to look back up at the rogue leader, but her eyes narrowed when she saw that Minato was standing over her with his sword pointed at the leader.

"..." Kushina frowned and got to her feet, shifting to stand beside Minato, gripping her kunai once more. "I can handle him on my own, blondy..."

Minato shook his head, but halted half way through and backed up slightly. "I'll back you up..."

Kushina grinned lightly at this, but turned her attention sharply back to the rogue leader when she felt him move. The leader raised his arm up to bring the blade down, though this time his movement was slow so Kushina could watch every little motion. Kushina darted forward before he could bring down the small blade, elbowing him in the stomach and sending him stumbling back wards. But Kushina didn't finish there. She quickly brought her arm up in a swift motion, slitting his arm in an attempt to force him to drop the weapon.

The rogue leader was stubborn, however. He managed to keep his grip on the weapon, and barely got his footing back in time before Kushina darted forward with another attack.

"Just who do you think you're dealing with?!" The man snarled, his good hand shooting behind his back to retrieve something. Kushina's eyes narrowed.

_"Watch it! He-"_

Minato quickly flickered into sight, his feet parted and his sword already slashing away at the object the rogue leader had thrown. Before Kushina could realize anything, she felt Minato take her by the waist and move forward in a shunshin swiftly. Kushina was about to demand what he was doing, but a large flash and explosion answered her question. Everything went white in Kushina's side, which made her ponder if she had died in the explosion.

But her sight was steadily returning, and the first thing she saw was the blackened ground several meters away. Minato slowly turned to look over his shoulder, protectively shielding Kushina from the explosion. A few burnt bodies were visible and scattered, though the remaining rogue corpses were no where to be seen. Minato slowly calmed, then he stiffened when he realized that he was still holding Kushina and quickly pulled his arms back, already feeling the blood rushing up to his cheeks. Kushina glimpsed at him for a moment, but turned to look at her side when she spotted the other ninja out of the corner of her eyes.

Fugaku's Sharingan was still active and assessing the blackened battlefield, before they slowly faded back into their original onyx coloring. Tsume panted lightly, while Kuromaru shook the ashes off his fur.

"Well it seems like that got 'em all..."

The group turned to look back at the village behind them, only to see a stark, black-furred wolf trotting up to them. Kuromaru tensed at this, while Minato looked confused. Fugaku and Tsume's expressions were unreadable. The larger canine just stared back at the group calmly with odd violet eyes. It shook its head and slowly trotted up to them, a small limp in its step. He halted before Kushina, hilting his head to look up at her. Kushina was about to say something, but the expression on the wolf's maw changed suddenly to annoyance.

The wolf looked over his broad shoulder, snarling when he saw that Kuromaru was taking a few sniffs at his rear. He spun around and snapped his jaw threateningly at the Ninken. Kuromaru jumped back in time and bared his fangs, growling deeply from the pit of his throat. Kushina noted that a fight was about to break out between the canines, so she stepped in between the two.

"Don't, Kuromaru! It's Daylian-nii-san!!"

Kuromaru looked a bit dumbfounded at this, but he slowly calmed himself and looked over at the wolf, which nodded a bit. Smoke suddenly burst from the black wolf, a small _poof_ echoing before Daylian stood where the wolf was. Without any warning at all, Kushina threw her arms around Daylian. The older Uzu nin yelped a bit when Kushina came in contact with his stomach wound, but he forced himself to ignore then pain and placed a bandaged hand on Kushina's head.

"Don't you dare disappear on me again, nii-san..." Kushina whispered shakily. Violet eyes softened a bit, before he stroked her hair.

"I won't..."

Fugaku cleared his throat from where he was, causing Kushina to look up at him as well as the rest of the group.

"We'll be resting one more night here, then we're heading back to Konoha... our mission is complete."

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **The yakuza is like... a Japanese mafia, pretty much. xD; For those who don't know... and a hakama is like those 'skirts' that samurais wear. Again, sorry for the usage of unfamiliar Japanese words..!

A cookie to anyone who can guess what the title is from. O:


	10. When I'm Gone

**Chapter X: When I'm Gone**

"Nngh..."

"Hold still, Yumi-chan..." Minato murmured reassuringly. Yumi just continued to clutch tightly onto the sleeves of his dusty shirt, squeezing one eye shut with pain while Tamura applied some anesthetic to the gash on her arm. The girl cringed more, curling up into a ball but still held out her arm for Tamura to tend to. Minato placed a hand on her head and stroked her dirty brown hair to soothe her. Kushina sat a few feet away, pinching her nose shut while Hiroshi slept in her lap, leaning against her shoulder. Tamura straightened himself with a light sigh, before he smiled warily.

"The medicine in Konoha is just amazing..." Tamura murmured as he capped the bottle again, pulling the small, soaked cotton ball away from Yumi's wound. The clear liquid in the bottle was still more than full, looking as if Tamura barely even used it at all. Yumi opened her eyes and turned to look over at Tamura, whom went digging through his small medicine bag once more. Minato exhaled a soft sigh, causing Yumi to look up at him. She returned her gaze back to Tamura when she no longer heard the rummaging. Tamura looked a bit disappointed at how small the roll of bandages were, but he pulled some out and carefully wrapped it around Yumi's arm, causing her to flinch. Tamura murmured for her to bear it just a bit longer, making sure that the bandage was wrapped securely around her wound before he pulled back, dropping the remaining roll of bandages back into his bag and closing it.

"Phew..." The client wiped his forehead with the back of his hand, before he smiled warily. "More than half of my supplies gone due to today..."

"We're sorry." Minato murmured, looking down when Yumi's grip on his shirt lightened. The girl was beginning to look drowsy, her eyelids drooping and her head slowly tilting down wards. "If we had known the rogues were going to ambush the village, maybe less people would have been hurt..." Minato took Yumi from underneath the arms and lifted her off the ground with a small grunt, carrying her across the small hut and onto the bundle of hay at the back.

"That may be so... but all of you stopped the rogues from completely destroying the village."

"Tamura-san-" Minato turned around, but blinked when he saw that Tamura was lowered onto the floor in a deep, formal bow.

"I can't thank you all enough...!"

Kushina turned her head to look over at Minato to see his reaction. The blond Chuunin blinked, but he calmed and smiled weakly.

"You're the one who requested the mission, Tamura-san... We're only doing our job as ninja." Minato kept smiling, but glimpsed back out the window and realized that the last of the sunlight was beginning to die out. "It's been a long day... You should go get some sleep, Tamura-san..."

"You're right..." Tamura had already sat up, then took his medicine bag and slowly got to his feet. He exhaled a light sigh, and how tired he was clearly evident on his face. Tamura slowly loped over to the exit of the hut, looking over his shoulder to cast another grateful smile at the two ninja before he slipped out into the darkening streets. Minato sighed softly as well, but his smile soon returned when he turned to look at Kushina. The kunoichi just returned the look, before she grinned back. Minato stiffened slightly, but soon recovered and continued to smile.

Minato's blue gaze shifted back over to the window, a sudden thought suddenly coming back to him.

_"Namikaze, you take the first shift tonight."_

"Ah..." Minato shifted a bit and looked at Kushina. "I gotta watch guard for a bit..."

Kushina snorted a bit. "Are you sure? The rogues are pretty much gone now.."

Minato shook his head. "Who knows? A couple of them could be hanging around... And I don't really want to be kicked awake by Fugaku-taichou or anything." He laughed nervously at the thought. Kushina grunted as she recalled when she was kicked in the stomach by her bunshin during her previous mission.

"Yeah... Fugaku-taichou said I take the second shift, right, 'tebayo?" She grumbled softly, suddenly reminded to keep her voice level down when Hiroshi shifted where he slept in her lap. Minato stifled a nod.

"I can take over your watch if you want..."

Kushina snorted again. "And let you stay up? Forget it. Wake me up when it's my turn, datte'sa..."

As if to end the discussion, Kushina shifted to pick Hiroshi up and put him into the haystack beside his sister. Minato just continued to stare as the kunoichi made way to the wall next to the makeshift bed, lowering to the floor and leaning against the wall. Kushina paused when the wall creaked a bit, but relaxed when it was able to support most of her weight.

"G'night, blondy."

"Good night, Kushina-san.." Minato smiled, before he slung his weight sword across his back and left the hut.

Minato took a few moments to glimpse around, getting a good look of his surroundings before the streets turned completely dark. A soft sigh escaped the Chuunin, his gaze flitting up wards. There were a bunch of clouds hanging overhead, blocking out the moonlight most of the time. Minato shook his head and turned to trail around the village, being sure to keep his senses sharp as he walked around. Of course, to him it was rather difficult to do so. As usual, Kushina plagued his mind. As well as thoughts of this afternoon. Another sigh slipped past his mouth.

More than ever did he want to rewind back a few hours previously, when he had his arms around Kushina's waist to shield her from the small explosive the rogue leader had thrown. Minato turned red at the thought and shook his head, trying to focus on keeping watch around the dark village.

His sense managed to kick in when Minato felt someone shifting through the village. Shoulders tensing, Minato darted forward with his footsteps barely audible, his hand already reaching for his sword. As he approached the person, he hoped it wasn't some random villager he was about to assault. Though the silhouette of a club raised over the large man's head proved him other wise, and the Chuunin drew his own weapon.

Minato silently cursed the blocked moonlight. He still wasn't attuned to fighting in the darkness, so he only hoped that he could actually attack and dodge correctly out of sound and sense alone.

The rogue grinned snidely, though Minato couldn't see it, and brought down his club on the boy. Minato could hear the large _whoosh_ the wooden weapon made, and spun to his right to evade the attack. While he spun, Minato reached out with his sword to cut into the man's stomach. The Chuunin then shifted and appeared on the rogue's shoulders, tightly clasping his hands over the rogue's mouth to muffle the yell. The rogue writhed as if Minato wasn't there, before he stiffened and fell to the ground. Minato jumped back before the bulky man could hit the dirt, exhaling a deep sigh. The Chuunin remained where he was for atleast half a minute, before he cautiously approached the silhouette of the fallen rogue.

There was a small splash when Minato approached the rogue's side, and it made him stiffen as the blood's scent finally wafted up to his nose. Minato hesitantly withdrew his sword back into its sheath on his back, before he lowered to reach out and touch the man's back. He shivered when the rogue's skin was already deathly cold against his fingertips.

_Did I just kill him?_

Minato's hand unconscious reached up to cover his mouth, feeling his stomach threatening to spew out the food he barely had eaten.

This fear was starting to get ridiculous. He was a _ninja_, practically a tool used for death nearly everyday. The man was only a rogue and yet Minato was there feeling as though he had to throw up. The blond mentally punched himself in the stomach when he felt himself beginning to shiver.

_Stop. stop stop stop stop stop._ Minato repeated in his head, squeezing his blue eyes shut to force himself to stop shaking. _This is just one man I don't know... Be lucky that it wasn't someone close to me..._

Minato's shivering seemed to halt at that sudden thought, and he slowly opened his eyes to stare into the dark street. The night air was still, and he could only hear his own heartbeat as well as his shaken breathing. As the minutes passed, Minato's breathing was calmed as well, keeping the previous thought in mind.

He exhaled a wary, dragging sigh and hung his head a bit, before he straightened himself and got up. Minato rubbed his temples a bit, shaking his head before he turned to look down at the rogue's silhouette. The corner of his mouth twitched but then he sighed and lowered to haul the man off the ground, then dragged him out of the street. Of course, Minato didn't have a shovel, nor did he have any knowledge of Doton jutsus. He shook his head and continued to drag the bulky man to the edge of the village, dumping him into some foliage and sighing a bit.

The blond Chuunin shook his head and turned around to head back into the village, kicking some dirt to cover up the small puddle of blood. Minato dozed for several moments, but remembered that he was on guard duty and started walking silently around the village.

It was quiet for the rest of his shift, no signs of other rogues in hiding other than the first one.. Minato truly was tempted to take over Kushina's shift, but he shook his head when he recalled that she would take her own turn. He turned to look around, thanking the cold wind when it pushed some of the clouds from the moon's path to give him some lighting. The blond wandered the village for another half a minute, before he finally found Yumi and Hiroshi's home and entered.

Instead of Kushina sitting up, she had fallen asleep on her side, curled up slightly to retain warmth against the cold air.

Minato couldn't stop himself from smiling at the sight. He stepped forward to approached her, lowering down and reaching out to shake her awake. He paused a couple of inches away from her shoulder, another sudden thought hitting him. Something that both his sensei and Kuromaru had said.

_"This mission's a good chance to tell her."_

Hesitantly, Minato drew his hand back to clutch the part of his shirt above his heart, turning his head to look away from Kushina. "..."

He exhaled a soft sigh and turned to look out the window, managing to catch a glimpse of the white moon before it disappeared behind the clouds once more.

_... Sensei... Kuromaru... you might think I can just tell her... but it's easier said than done..._ He shook his head and closed his eyes, lowering his head slightly. _The reality is that I'm still too scared... I can't just tell her... not yet... _

Minato opened his eyes, staring at Kushina's relaxed, slumbering expression.

_When I'm ready... I'll tell her..._

Minato reached out and gently took Kushina by the shoulder to wake her.

"Kushina-san..."

* * *

"Geeehhhhh that was great!! Gosousama!" Daylian grinned widely after he set the pair of chopsticks back on the small dish before him, leaning back with a satisfied sigh. Tsume and Kuromaru were beginning to wolf down on the last of their food, devouring every little specks in the bowls. Kushina took a long drink from the tea Tamura provided, exhaling a large sigh before placing the cup down. Fugaku sat with his arms folded, already done with his meal and looking rather unimpressed by the quality of it. Minato gingerly picked at the last pieces of his food, feeling guilty that Yumi and Hiroshi weren't able to eat as much as the ninja just did. Tamura smiled from where he sat across the Chuunin.

"Just some of the ways you can repay you for driving the rogues away..."

"It wasn't that hard!!" Tsume barked with her mouth full of rice, spitting out a couple of pieces when she spoke. Kuromaru didn't hesitate to lick up those pieces. "Most of them were like mentally retarded or something! I mean it's like they were freaking _cavemen _or something!"

Tamura laughed nervously. "Still... we cannot thank you enough... When will you be leaving, though?"

"Within the hour." Fugaku replied almost immediately. "It's nearly been a week... It's about time to return to our village, if we're done here."

Kushina frowned at the Uchiha's last sentence, before she plopped the last bit of rice into her mouth and chewed. _Jerk..._

"Oh.. I see." Tamura mumbled, clearly not wanting to see them off so soon. Fugaku only regarded this, looking over at Daylian. The black-haired Uzu-nin's expression dropped at this. "..."

"Will you be returning with us to Konoha?" Fugaku questioned, his voice giving off no emotion. Daylian snorted.

"Would you rather I crawled in a ditch and joined the rest of my family?" Daylian retorted with another smirk. Kushina could feel herself freeze, but she forced herself to swallow her food. She turned to look over at the Uchiha, and anger replaced sadness when she saw that Fugaku had a brow risen. Though it was hard to tell, there was a small message in his eyes that said 'Go ahead, then.'

Daylian must have caught that look as well, since he threatened to get up and punch the daylights out of Fugaku. Minato frowned and got up, placing a hand on Daylian's shoulder to stop him from doing so.

"Calm down, please, Daylian-san..." Minato murmured, managing to slowly push Daylian back onto the floor. The Uzu nin still seemed to be angry, since he glared past Minato and at Fugaku while he gritted his teeth. Minato turned to look back at Fugaku, but the Uchiha's face was smoothed over, eyes no longer displaying any emotion.

Fugaku only regarded the small scene by getting to his feet. He ran his hand over his clothing to rid it of the dust. "Get ready, all of you... We're leaving soon..."

With that, the Uchiha turned around and left the large hut, the woven mat falling back into his place. Daylian growled and crossed his arms.

"Dammit, that guy..."

Tsume groaned and rubbed her temples. "We can survive another three days..." She muttered, creating small circles in her temple using her fingers. Kuromaru shook his head. He stretched, stifled a yawn, and got to his paws.

"You heard the leader... We gotta go and pack the stuff. Or you, anyway." The black and gray ninken's shoulder blades shifted in a shrug. Tsume rolled her eyes but got to her feet.

"Thanks for the food, Tamura-yatsu." She murmured, raising a hand in a wave before she left as well. Kuromaru trotted after her in silence.

Minato, Kushina, and Daylian all glanced at each other when none of them made a move to leave. Minato sat back down and rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

"I never really unpacked..."

"I'm still carrying everything, datte'sa." Kushina deadpanned a bit and patted her weapon pouch. Daylian snorted and flopped onto his back, folding his arms beneath his head in a simple makeshift pillow.

"Never carried anything to begin with." He stated simply with a light shrug. Tamura shook his head from where he was, getting to his feet and trailing to the other side of the hut.

"Well you're about to carry some stuff... If you're going to be traveling back, then I have to give you some medicine..."

Daylian groaned at this. Though he remained silent. There was no point in arguing with Tamura in a situation like this. For all he knew, if he tried to protest, Tamura could just lodge a bunch of medicine down his throat to knock him out for the next three days. And if that happened, then Fugaku would probably try and throw him in a ditch or something. Then Kushina would get all angry... Daylian deadpanned as he train of thoughts continued onto more random topics.

Kushina waved a hand in front of his violet eyes a few times. Tamura trailed back over with a small parcel, staring down at Daylian.

"Is he alright?"

"He thinks alot. Just one of his moments." Kushina shrugged a bit, giving up on trying to snap him out of his thoughts.

"How long do they normally last?" Minato questioned, staring at Daylian's dozing eyes. Kushina shrugged once more.

"Depends on if he's imaginative at the moment or not, 'tebayo."

Minato laughed nervously at this response, but got to his feet when Tamura handed the small parcel to Kushina. He brushed the dust off his clothing, turning to look over at the other three in the hut.

"I'll go get my stuff... and say goodbye to Yumi-chan and Hiroshi-kun.." His expression dropped a bit at this, before he turned around to leave the hut. Kushina blinked a bit and jumped to her feet.

"Hey, I'm coming too!" She called, before spinning around on her heels to speak to Tamura next. "When Da-nii comes back, tell him we'll be back soon."

Tamura nodded at this, tilting his head to look down at the dozing Uzu nin. Kushina grinned a bit, before she spun on her heels and strode forward to catch up to Minato. The blond smiled lightly when Kushina caught up, before holding the mat aside for her to pass through. She just mumbled a quick thanks to him and walked out onto the street to walk in the direction of the small children's' hut. Minato caught up to her moments after, sighing softly as he thought about how the two orphans would react to their leaving. Well, they would find out in a bit, but Minato could probably guess what the scene would be like. He glimpsed over at Kushina, wondering she was thinking. Her expression was blank and unreadable, making the blond sigh inwardly.

As the two approached the hut, the two said children stepped outside to greet them. Minato inwardly flinched. Yumi looked as though she were about to break down crying, while Hiroshi... well, Hiroshi was still sucking his thumb with a blank expression. Usual. Minato could feel Kushina flinch from beside him as well.

"You guys are going to leave already?" Yumi questioned as soon as they were within earshot, not whispering this time while she fought the tears from falling. Minato forced himself to smile, though it was weak.

"We have to return to our village..." He explained. Yumi winced and lowered her eyes. "..."

Kushina managed to crack a small smile as well. "Hey... don't be like that..." She trailed off, unable to think of anything reassuring to say. It's not like they would come back... so there wasn't much to say.

Yumi hesitantly nodded though. Hiroshi shuffled silently into the hut, returning moments later holding Minato's bag with some difficulty. Minato's eyes widened a bit, but he smiled and took the bag from the small boy.

"Arigatou..."

"I packed some apples for you guys..."

Kushina and Minato both stared at Hiroshi, amazed that he spoke at all. Yumi just looked at her brother, before looking back at the older ninja. Clearly she had heard her younger brother's voice before, so she only regarded it. The ninja, however, were still staring at the boy. Hiroshi started to grow uncomfortable at this, squirming before he scurried back to cower behind his sister. Yumi lowered her gaze once more, raising her finger to touch her lip. "..."

"Come on, Yumi-chan..." Minato murmured. He slung his bag onto one shoulder and soon felt the pressure of his sword on his back, but regarded this. He stepped forward and lowered onto one knee before the orphan girl. Yumi slowly turned her gaze to look into his blue ones. "...?"

"We'll still be friends, no matter how far apart we are..."

"...!" Yumi looked up when Minato got back up to his feet, before she stepped back and took her brother's hand. "Okay..."

Minato managed to smile, for real this time, at the girl, before he turned to look over at Kushina. The kunoichi shrugged a bit, but bit her lip when she looked back over at the little kids. Hiroshi was now standing besides Yumi, a couple of tears already straying past his eyes and down his dirty cheeks. Yumi was holding his hand carefully, her free hand up by her lip again. Minato smiled weakly again, raising his hand in a wave.

"Good bye..." He murmured. Kushina pursed her lips, but slowly turned around. Minato took another look at the two kids, before he turned around as well.

"Minato-kun... Kushina-chan..."

The two halted when Yumi spoke their names, both of them looking over their shoulders in unison. Yumi took a couple of steps forward, pulling Hiroshi along with her. "Can... can you help save villages like ours?" She asked, loudly enough so that the two could hear. Minato could hear Kushina draw in a sharp breath. Minato turned his head to stare at Kushina. Her eyes were widened slightly, and she slowly turned her own head to look at him as well. Minato nodded a bit and looked back over at the two children.

"I... we promise... We won't let any more villages fall so long as we can help them."

"A promise of a lifetime, datte'sa." Kushina added. Minato looked back over at her, only to see that her expression was serious. As the kunoichi turned around to leave, she didn't look back at him. Minato's gaze shifted back over to Yumi, whom was nodding and allowing the tears to fall while she waved. Hiroshi was waving his own hand weakly up and down in simple motions. Minato smiled lightly before he raised his own hand in a wave, turning to follow Kushina.

"What a promise..." Was the first thing Kushina murmured once Minato got in pace with her. Her voice cracked a bit when she spoke. Kushina wiped her eyes. "I'm not sure if I can actually keep that promise or not..."

"..." Minato was hesitant in doing so, but he placed a hand on Kushina's shoulder. He could feel Kushina stiffen a bit from beneath his hand, but her shoulder dropped as she slowly calmed.

"We'll just do the best we can... alright?"

Kushina stared blankly at the ground before her, before she slowly grinned and looked back over at Minato. The blond saw the sudden change in her expression and, as always, he could feel the blood rising up to his cheeks in a blush once more. Though he just grinned back in response, motioning to the front and hoped that she wouldn't take notice of his red face.

"Come on... we should catch up with the others. It's about time we headed back home..."

The kunoichi paused at his words then stared at him for several moments, as if thinking. She pursed her lips for a moment. _Home..._ But soon enough, the grin returned and Kushina punched the air. "Alright! Back to Konoha it is, dattebayo!!"

* * *

"I have _hated_ the last three days!!" Daylian yelled out on the final day of the trip, his voice echoing slightly against some of the larger trees of the Hi no Kuni's giant forest. To try to get himself to focus on something else, Daylian took a large swig of the bottled medicine he held in his hand and then crumbled the paper bag with his other. The black hair Uzu nin grimaced in disgust when he lowered the emptied bottle, also hating the fact that he didn't have anything to wash away the taste of the medicine. Tsume grumbled and unplugged her ears, muttering about Daylian being a bit loud. Kuromaru only shook his head.

"We're almost there, though." The Ninken pointed out. Daylian couldn't stop himself from rolling his eyes, before he forced himself to calm down and look down at Kushina.

"How big is the place, anyway?"

"You've been asking that question for the past few days." Kushina only grumbled back in response, looking up at him from the corners of her eyes. Daylian stifled a shrug.

"I don't want to get lost..." He mumbled. Snickers escaped Minato at the thought. Clearly he was able to remember when Kushina first arrived to Konoha, lost and confused as to where to go. Just about everything they talked about was still crystal clear to him, right down to him catching her when she fell... Minato's face dropped a bit at the sudden remembrance. He raised his hand and faked a cough, giving him an excuse to cover a bit of his face with his mouth. Blue eyes trailed over to the others to see if they would notice.

Thankfully, Kushina pointed ahead to divert their attention to something else.

"There's the gates!!" She cried.

Minato followed her gaze with the rest of the group. Indeed, the large walls that surrounded Konohagakure were barely visible over the line of trees before them. The opened gates were within sight on the cleared path before them, as well.

"Damn!! I knew Konoha was huge, but...!" Daylian scratched his head, continuing to stare in awe at the slowly-approaching village. Kushina grinned as well.

"That's what I thought, exactly..."

Fugaku cleared his throat from where he was leading the group, turning his head to look over his shoulder. "Of course Konoha is naturally large... We are one of the five principle shinobi countries... Unlike Uzu was." He added snidely. Kushina's eyes narrowed angrily at this, before she stepped forward and took the Uchiha by the shoulder to spin him around. She gathered a fistful of his shirt, yanking him down to her eye level.

"That was uncalled for, bastard!!" She snarled into his face. Fugaku just remained calm, his emotionless facade unwavering.

"I believe Sandaime Hokage-sama is waiting for us to report back from the mission." Fugaku just stated. Kushina breathed heavily in anger, red-brown eyes still narrowed into a dangerous glare. Slowly, with her hand quivering, she released Fugaku's clothing to allow him to straight. The Uchiha smoothed out his clothes, staring at Kushina for longer moments before he turned around. He raised his hand and caught the punch that was thrown his way, taking Daylian's arm and flipping him. Daylian landed roughly on his back, knocking the wind out of him and causing him to cringe from the pain as well.

"Daylian-nii!!" Kushina cried as she rushed over to her brother's side. Minato, Tsume and Kuromaru were instantly on guard, frowning deeply while their feet parted slightly, preparing for any worst-case scenarios. Fugaku just glared down at Daylian.

Daylian grimaced and coughed a bit, scowling when he could taste blood in his mouth. He opened his eyes, and stiffened a bit when he found himself looking up at a pair of glaring Sharingan eyes.

"I am the leader of this platoon, whether you like me or not." Fugaku growled. "It is a shinobi's job to obey by that leader's orders. It doesn't matter if you hate me, I'm leader either way." With that, Fugaku turned and continued down the path, as if he was never attacked or even said a word. Daylian bit back a growl and struggled to sit up, Kushina helping him. "Dammit..."

Minato exhaled a sigh and dropped his shoulders, moving forward and looking down at Daylian, Tsume and Kuromaru right behind him.

"Are you alright, Daylian-san?" He questioned, helping Kushina pull the Uzu nin to his feet. Daylian slowly nodded.

"I think I'm fine... Just that my back hurts like _hell_ right now..." He hissed through his teeth. Kushina sighed in relief at this, but continued to support him. Tsume sighed and walked past them then halted a couple of steps to look back at them.

"C'mon... let's go report to Hokage-sama, like Uchiha said." The Inuzuka kunoichi growled. "Before he decides to wail on Daylian-yatsu or one of us." Kuromaru nodded in agreement to this, shifting to follow his human partner. Minato sighed and shot a glance at Daylian, then Kushina.

"Right..."

* * *

Kushina sighed softly as she trailed down the stairs to her apartment. Things were just tiring when they arrived back in Konoha. They went straight to the Hokage Tower and reported the mission, though Tsume and Kuromaru stayed behind for a few minutes since Fugaku left out alot of details that the Inuzuka pair felt that Sarutobi needed to know. After that, Minato showed her and Daylian to the hospital, since Sarutobi pointed out that it would be best if Daylian got his injuries looked at. (Of course, Daylian didn't really want to go, but since Sarutobi insisted that he did, he went.) Minato had gone home to tell his parents that he was back, while Kushina went to her home as well. She ate one of the last cups of ramen that Minato had bought her, and left soon after, feeling too anxious about Daylian to stay boxed inside of her apartment. Air was what she needed at the moment.

She jumped the last two steps and walked into the dirt streets. _Maybe I'll go visit Sae... how long has it been since I've last seen her, anyway, datte'sa?_ Kushina thought for a few moments, then nodded and decided that it was time she visited one of her friends. Hopefully Sae wasn't angry that Kushina had been away for more than two weeks.

The Yamanaka wasn't.

"It's been so long, Kushina-chan!!" Sae immediately bounced around the counter, her footsteps silent against the floor, and gave Kushina a big hug. Kushina couldn't stop herself from smiling, but made no move since her arms were pinned by her sides.

"Yeah... Sorry."

"Oh, it's alright!" Sae smiled and released Kushina. She straightened herself, before motioning over to the counter so that they weren't loitering in the doorway. Sae returned onto the other side of the counter, leaning over it while she rested her head in her palm.

"Were your missions fun?" She questioned as soon as Kushina approached the counter. The kunoichi nodded a bit. She turned and leaned against the counter, being sure to allow Sae to see the doorway, and looked over her shoulder back at the Yamanaka.

"Well... The first one was boring. All I had to do was go to Ame to deliver a scroll... of course they were being paranoid, so they attacked the courier bird I was with, 'tebayo." Kushina rolled her eyes as she recalled the memory. Sae blinked her light-blue eyes.

"I see..."

Kushina stifled a shrug and took that as a hint to go on to the next mission.

"The next mission we had was a group mission-"

"Ooh! Who'd you go with?" Sae questioned immediately. Kushina stopped herself before she could sigh.

"Uh. Fugaku, Tsume, Kuromaru, and blondy." Kushina murmured. Sae blinked once more, before her mouth dropped open a bit.

"You went on a mission with Namikaze-kun?" She questioned. Her expression soon changed to a smug smile, before she leaned across the counter to move closer to Kushina. "Did you two do anything?"

Kushina rose a brow, looking over her shoulder and down at the half-crouching Yamanaka. "... Uhm... Can I keep telling what happened on the mission?"

Sae obviously took this the wrong way, since she squealed a bit and leaned back. "Tell me!!"

The red-haired kunoichi scratched her head a bit. "Well... The mission was that we had to escort the client guy back to his village and kill the rogues that've been attacking his town, 'tebayo..." She started. "But when we got there, it turns out my brother managed to hold off the rogues." Kushina turned to look back at Sae's reaction. Sae's mouth had dropped open again, eyes wide with clear shock.

"Your brother?! Is he okay?!"

"Yeah... He's in the hospital now, datte'sa." Kushina smiled and sighed with relief. "Just getting his injuries properly looked at..."

Sae straightened herself, closing her eyes and sighing as well. "That's good... atleast you're not alone anymore..." Sae smiled softly as she opened her eyes again. Kushina nodded a bit, before turning her head when a woman trailed into the shop. Sae noticed this as well, making her smile a tad larger.

"Welcome! Do you need any assistance?" Sae greeted. The woman looked up, then shook her head timidly. "I'm fine... just looking around..."

"Alright. I'll be right over here if you need anything." Sae nodded. She turned her gaze back to Kushina. "What else happened?"

"Well... I passed out... Blondy took care of me for a bit... Daylian-nii woke up and we talked about the rogues... We scouted around, but the village was being ambushed... we beat up the rogues. And the leader of the group of rogues blew himself up." Kushina dozed for a bit. "I think that about sums it up, dattebayo..."

Sae groaned a bit. "C'monnnn Kushina-channn! Details!"

Kushina sighed. "Okay okay... The battle, then... Geez... Uhhh. So I beat up a couple of rogues, one of them managed to kill my bunshin, though.. Anyways, Fugaku told us to follow him to the edge of the village, where Tsume and Kuromaru rounded them up... Uh. They had Tamura, the client, as a hostage... But blondy got 'im back, and the battle started..." Kushina dozed a bit as she fought to remember the battle that occurred a few days ago. "Uhhh... I think I got kicked in the stomach by a rogue, and one of them was about to stab me... Though Fugaku kinda saved me." She grumbled a bit. "I guess I kinda like him for that, but-"

"You like _Fugaku_?!" Sae obviously took the word 'like' the wrong way.

A pace or two outside the shop entrance, Minato froze. He was on his way to find his sensei, but had overheard the conversation right when Kushina was speaking the last couple of sentences. And he _definitely_ heard what Sae just blurted out. Kushina _liked_ Fugaku? Minato was too shocked to think clearly. He forced himself to breathe, before he spun around and disappeared in a high-speed shunshin.

He didn't want to hear the rest of the conversation.

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **You say gosousama after you eat your meals. c: And before the meals you commonly say 'itadaki masu'. xP Just in case any of you didn't know.

And ohhhhhhhh I am _so_ evil. But don't worry, you guys. C; All shall be explained in the next chapter...! Or two. xP  
Gyehhh. I'm definitely evil. I'm being so mean to Minato-sama the day before Valentine's day. x.x (speaking of which, I hope you all have a good one! ;3)

(Oh, man. This chapter's a bit shorter than the others. Sorry about that, guys. x.x)  
**Edit: **Whoops! xD Fixed an odd typo. Thanks to Ellenlome to pointing it out! -hands cookies-


	11. Over and Over

**Chapter XI: Over and Over **

Kushina sputtered at Sae's word, before her expression dropped into a deadpan and she looked at the Yamanaka. A heavy silence filled the air, creating an uneasy feeling for the roaming customer in the shop.

"Girl-blondy says what?" Kushina questioned in a type of monotone, a brow quirked. _Kushina_ like _Fugaku_? Yeah right. Not after what he had said about Uzu and how he took down Daylian. _Never_. Not even if he got down on his knees and kissed Daylian's foot and begged for forgiveness.

Sae blinked a bit, before she exhaled a sigh. A sigh of relief. "Oh man, you scared me for a moment, Kushina-chan..." Sae murmured. Kushina couldn't stop herself from rolling her eyes.

"Uh. Ew. I _hate_ Fugaku... I mean I thought he was an okay guy for a moment when he saved me, but he just turned out to be a total ass like two seconds after he saved me." Kushina stopped herself from spitting in the shop. She grumbled and rested her head against her palm to physically show how offensive she had taken what Sae assumed. The Yamanaka saw this and was immediately flailing her arms like some chibi from an anime.

"Ahhh! I'm sorry! You know how I can jump to conclusions!!" Sae cried. Kushina snorted and deepened her frown, turning to look away and gaze at some of the flowers aligning the shop. The kunoichi raised a brow when she didn't hear anything, slowly sliding her gaze back over to the blond. Kushina's expression dropped when it seemed like Sae would break down crying.

"Wh... wait! I was just joking! I'm not mad, dattebayo!!" Kushina pulled her head off her palm and flailed her own arms a bit. Sae looked up, before she started smiling. Though it had a smug look behind it.

"I was just kidding too, you know...!"

Kushina dropped her arms back down to her sides, staring at Sae for several moments before she grinned. "Geez, Sae, 'tebayo..."

Sae smiled back cheerfully, but propped her elbows against the counter and leaned forward a bit. "What were you saying?"

"Right..." Kushina grumbled, scratching her head. Her eyes grew blank as she thought for several moments, trying to recall the fight. "Uh... Almost got stabbed... Fugaku saved me... Oh! Then I fought the rogue leader! And frankly, he was a better fighter than the rest of those rogues..."

Sae watched with amusement as Kushina jumped back and began describing the fight, using hand motions and some odd sound effects to add onto the details. Of course, Kushina was forced to stop when she almost knocked over a small tower of flowers, and returned to describing the rest of the mission using words only. Sae rose a brow when Kushina got to the part about Minato saving her from the small explosive.

"Wait for a sec..." Sae murmured, making Kushina pause. "How'd he carry you?"

Kushina blinked a bit, before she scratched her head, placing her other gloved hand on her hip. "He didn't really _carry_ me... Blond kinda just put his arm around my stomach and like... I dunno. He carried me but he didn't, datte'sa." Kushina continued to scratch her head lightly in confusion. Sae tilted her head in confusion for a few moments, before she squealed suddenly.

"That's so cute to picture, Kushina-chan!!"

The kunoichi could have stumbled if she was walking. "What are you, some crazy matchmaker or something?!" Kushina demanded loudly, causing the customer roaming the shop to look up. Sae shook her head and tried her best to look innocent.

"I just want to be informed on your love life, Kushina-chan..." Sae spoke innocently, blue eyes practically glowing at her 'innocent' radiance. Kushina just allowed her tongue to roll out then crossed her arms.

"Nyehhh... I'm still single, if you think I'm having a secret relationship with anyone..." Kushina sneered lightly, her tongue still sticking out. Sae looked disappointed at this. She looked up when the lady from before approached the counter hesitantly. Kushina silently moved aside, allowing Sae to punch in a few numbers on the register and murmur the total price. The woman dropped a few coins into Sae's palm, and the Yamanaka counted them silently before she dropped them into the proper slots, drawing out a smaller coin and tearing the lightly-inked receipt. Professionally, Sae pulled a small plastic bag from beneath the counter after she placed the coin and slip of paper in the customer's hand, swiftly bagging the potted plant and handing it to the woman with a smile.

"Thank you, and come again!"

The woman nodded back with a soft smile before she turned and left the flower shop without another word. The customer was soon forgotten as the girls returned to their conversation.

"But Kushina-channn," Sae whined. "You should at least go out with Namikaze-kun...!"

Kushina responded by groaning and rolling her eyes. "I'm content with being single, Sae, 'tebayo." She muttered. "Besides, me an' blondy are just friends... or like siblings, if you want an answer other than friends."

The kunoichi seemed to hit the nail on the head, since Sae dropped her arms in defeat. The Yamanaka slowly lowered her gaze, before she exhaled a soft sigh, another sign of defeat. Though she looked back up again with a smile this time.

"Well, I'm only suggesting, since you two seem to be close friends." The Yamanaka continued to smile. Kushina just snorted again as she folded her arms across her chest, throwing out her lower lip in a small pout. Still, she couldn't stop from picturing Minato and herself as a _couple._.. Kushina shook her head, wildly. The thought clearly flustered her, causing her cheeks to turn red.

"Uh. No...! I think we're fine as friends..." The kunoichi murmured, rubbing her cheek since it grew sore from the sudden blood rush. Sae had another look of disappointment but she soon discarded it by smiling.

"Alright... I think it's time you got back home, Kushina-chan." Sae pointed out. "It'll be dark within the hour, and I'm sure you're tired, right?"

Kushina could soon feel her shoulders begin to drag down when Sae finished her sentence. The Yamanaka was right- Kushina was just dead _tired_ by now. Everyone had a limit somewhere, right? Kushina nodded and raised her hand to cover her mouth when she stifled a yawn.

"Yeah... I'mma go take a bath an' eat, then..." She grumbled. Sae only smiled and nodded, raising her hand in a wave when Kushina turned to leave the shop.

Kushina dragged herself down the streets, rubbing her eyes and stifling a couple of more yawns along the way back. It would be nice to take a hot shower, and sleep in a bed as well as have food.

_Food..._

Only then did the kunoichi remember that there was only one cup ramen left, and she intended to leave that for Daylian. She sighed wearily and slouched a bit with a disappointed frown. Food meant money, and money meant getting a job. Kushina would have to do something about that tomorrow. A _job_. She groaned at the thought. Back in Uzu, she just let her parents deal with the money issues, but now... They're gone, and she would have to figure ways to get money in order for her and Daylian to survive in Konoha. The corner of her mouth twitched, before she shook her head and looked up when she approached the small apartment complex. Kushina yawned once more and pulled herself up the stairs using the metal railing.

Kushina leaned her head against the wall as she drowsily dug her pockets for the key, eyes drooping warily. She finally pulled out the key, turned the lock, and entered the room. Kushina used her feet to lazily take off her zori, then looked up and screamed.

The black wolf jumped when she screamed as well, violet eyes clearly startled at Kushina's reaction to seeing him. He lowered his head with a sigh, ears and tail drooping as well.

"Geez, you didn't have to scream..." Daylian muttered. Kushina was leaning heavily against the door for support, panting deeply as if she hadn't breathed for a long time.

"How did you find this place...? Much less, how'd you get _in_, dattebayo?!" Kushina demanded. Daylian pointed his maw over to the window while his purple gaze was still fixated on the startled kunoichi.

"I sniffed my way around, and then came in through the window." He stated. Kushina groaned slightly and pushed herself onto her feet, rubbing her temple as she trailed over to the wolf.

"So your wounds are all better, then?"

The wolf nodded as he turned to look at his own flank. "Yeah... This blond chick kinda just made the wound disappear... now they're just scars." He turned to look back at Kushina. "Kinda amazing, actually."

Kushina only shrugged a bit. She stifled another yawn, then trailed past Daylian and to the small drawer. She could hear Daylian's paw steps following curiously.

"So I'm sleeping on the floor, then?" Daylian questioned. Kushina could feel him looking over her shoulder as she lowered down to open one of the drawers. The kunoichi shook her head, untying her hitai-ate and folding it. She placed it in the drawer, pulling out some baggy clothes that Retsuya had provided, and then unbuckled her fingerless gloves.

"You can sleep on the bed..." Kushina mumbled, looking over her own shoulder and then stopping when she realized how close the wolf was to her face. The black wolf shrugged and backed up.

"It's easier to sleep on the floor in this form..." He muttered. "Besides, the beds too freaking small, anyway." He grumbled. "I would know- I tried it."

Kushina couldn't stop herself from deadpanning at this. But she grinned shortly after. Kushina picked up the clothing she had pulled out and moved past the wolf again, heading to the bathroom.

"There's a cup ramen for you... I'm going to go take a shower."

The wolf's ear cocked sideways at this, a brow quirked. "Oh?" He questioned before he trotted over to the cabinets, his black, invisible nose sniffing around for the said instant ramen cup. Kushina chuckled at this, before she closed the bathroom door shut behind her with a click.

* * *

_Why did he go to the training grounds?_

Minato would have wondered that himself, if it weren't for the fact that he was still in shock of what he overheard. One moment he was in the street in front of _Yamanaka Hana_, then everything blurred around him and he soon found himself in the lush forest of the training grounds. Minato raised both hands to cover his face as he fought to breathe, feeling rather lightheaded from the recent events. His shoulders squared the more he thought about what happened less than a minute ago, before he groaned and leaned back, allowing himself to fall to the ground. He grunted a bit when he landed on the guard of his sword, but shifted it so that he wasn't lying on it. At the same time, Minato could feel himself pale slightly. It was real. Everything that happened just now was real. _Real..._

Drawing in a choked breath, Minato rested his arm over his eyes in a futile attempt.

"Shinobi rule number 25..." He whispered to himself, his lips barely moving. _A shinobi must never show their tears..._ He finished the rest of the sentence in his mind. Minato drew in another hissed breath, his fingers curling into a fist and easily plucking the grass blades from the ground. Despite repeating the twenty-fifth rule over in his mind, a few tears managed to stray past his arm and down his face.

Minato shivered from where he lay on his back, more tears following the first couple before his breathing started to become more sharp and choked. He bit his lower lip for a while, but released it when he though he could feel his teeth cutting into the flesh.

_"You can either get over it and move onto another person... Not deal with it at all and just live with the sadness of not being able to have them your whole life..." _

He could hear Jiraiya's voice echoing so clearly in his head. Despite through all the sadness, Minato was slightly surprised that he was able to remember the exact words after all those days. Slightly.

_"Or chance it- maybe they'll like you back. You'll both be happy, and you'll have someone to fight for and to protect."_

Minato could feel himself going limp. His muscles were unnaturally relaxed, and even his choked breathes halted. But his lungs eventually started wailing for air, and Minato provided with the ragged, cut-off breathing. He cringed as the tears started to fall once more, but this time he barely had the strength to stop them.

Minato felt lightheaded when the tears began to slow. But he continued to lay there with his arm still covering his eyes. His free hand lay limply by his side, the grass he had plucked earlier already blended in with the ones that were still attached to the ground.

The blond Chuunin slowly slid his left arm back down to his side, allowing his swollen blue eyes to stare up at the sky.

How long had he been lying here?

The sky was already beginning to be bleached different tropical colors of pink and orange, which faded into blue and then a dark purple at the approaching night. On the darker side of the sky, the stars were already beginning to blink into view to aid the moon in illuminating the night.

Minato frowned sadly before he slowly got up, ignoring the odd feeling in his back from lying on his weighted sword for so long. He remained seated from where he was in the grass while wary blue eyes glimpsed at the area around him. The training grounds were lifeless with him being the only exception. Though Minato felt rather hollowed out right now. He exhaled a soft sigh and got to his feet. His bones cracked slightly at his movement but he only ignored it. Another sigh rolled off his tongue.

Minato slowly approached the stream and lowered onto one knee at the edge of the water. Leaning over, he scooped some water into cupped hands and then splashed the liquid into his face, repeating this process another two times before he felt slightly better than he had felt a moment earlier. Minato lowered his arms and stared blankly into the stream with his face, hitai-ate and bangs dripping.

The water dripped from his bangs and his chin, falling into the stream's surface and creating small ripples that made Minato's reflection appear wavy. Blue eyes stared back at each other, revealing the sadness that was plaguing the Chuunin. He continued to stare expressionlessly at his own reflection for what felt like at least an hour to him. The reflection suddenly had a dark frown before Minato lashed out at the water, breaking the rippled image of him and standing up. He clenched his fist and turned around to stalk in the direction of the training grounds, not even bothering to keep the volume of his footsteps low. So Minato stomped angrily, _noisily_ through the common training grounds.

He paused in front of a tree, frowning a bit as he glared at the bark. Using the same clenched fist, he drew his arm back and smashed his fist against the tree. Splinters of wood showered past him, barely nicking his face but managed to skim his arm quite a bit. Minato flinched and squeezed his right eye shut. His fist was bleeding, he could feel it. And the blood slowly trickled past his knuckles and drip onto the ground to paint it red.

Minato's arm quivered, but he kept his fist where it was. Instead, he only parted his feet slightly and hung his head. Shoulders shivered as he fought to keep himself from shedding salty tears once more.

He stayed in that position for who knows how long, then finally pulled his knuckle off the shattered tree bark. He pulled his fist back slowly and examined the bloody knuckles. He sighed and trailed back to the stream while he gently massaged his thumb, cursing the fact that he had closed his fingers around his thumb when he punched the tree. Now his thumb felt sprained, luckily it wasn't broken.

The blond Chuunin sighed and lowered back down besides the water, flinching when he dipped his hand into the stream. The icy temperature made it sting and the current only made it worse by scraping against the opened flesh. Small lines of faded red were trailing down the stream with the current, swirling in light wisps before they faded out of sight, overwhelmed by the amount of water.

Blue eyes watched as the small blood trails painted swirling motions in the water before dying out. The swirling motions mesmerized him for a brief moment but he sighed. Was he being _taunted_? Minato sighed softly. His blue gaze flickered back to the stream, noting that the red whirlpools had stopped. He pulled his knuckle out of the water and examined the cuts along his knuckles then got to his feet.

Minato shook his head and turned to lope out of the training grounds, eyes blank and his expression sullen. His right fist just hung limply by his side, swaying as he walked. The small wounds themselves were just visible flesh with some small red spots where the blood clotted slightly. The knuckles were reddened slightly.

The blond nearly walked into the fence in his daze, but managed to get a hold of himself and blindly open the gates, allowing the breeze to swing it shut.

He looked practically dead on his feet as he dazedly walked into the village. Blue eyes were half-closed and staring blankly at the ground before him, though he managed to unconsciously weave his way around nocturnal villagers whom started to come out for the night clubs and bars. The streets were beginning to grow dark, though Minato barely noticed any change. The blond Chuunin managed to venture back to his house without knowing it. He blinked slowly in surprised when he found himself standing on the front porch of his house.

The corner of his mouth twitched slightly, before he exhaled another sigh and placed his hand on the doorknob. Hopefully his eyes weren't noticeably red. The last thing he needed was his parents riding on him about the twenty-fifth shinobi rule.

He turned the doorknob and pushed the door open.

"Tadaima..." Minato murmured meekly, closing the door behind him once he entered the house. Sighing inaudibly, Minato lowered and took off his zori and made sure they were aligned neatly to the side. Another thing he didn't want his parents bugging him about.

Minato trailed into the living room-slash-dining room, the first greeting he received was looks from his parents. Both of them were seated at the dining table, half way finished with their meal already. The tablemat on Minato's spot was set out, but the plate and food was missing. His mother was the first to look away, frowning slightly before she slipped a small bundle of rice into her mouth neatly. The father was next to look back down at his meal.

"Your dinner's in the kitchen, waiting." The man spoke, his voice deep and slightly rash. He took a sip from the small sake' cup that was held delicately between his scarred fingers. Minato just nodded obediently, before he turned around to trail into the kitchen. His plate was already there, wrapped to preserve the food for the time being. He took the plate and sighed inaudibly once more before he moved to join his parents.

The Chuunin set his plate on the table mat and then slipped his weighted sword off his back, moving to rest it against the wall. He pulled his chair back then took a seat, slouching a bit as he removed the wrapping and dazedly crumpled it up. His parents hardly seemed to notice.

Minato had gotten a lot of his physical appearance on his own, though a few qualities of his were visible on his parents as well. His naturally spiked hair was obviously from his father, though since the man was aging his hair began to grow limply with lines of white. The sharp shape of Minato's eyes were inherited from his mother, the way his jaw was shaped also received from the kunoichi. How Minato got his hair color was a mystery, though it was most likely suggested from his father, whom had a light tan coloring back in his younger years. Now the father's hair was just limp and slowly growing white, aging with him.

Sharp black eyes finally looked over at her son, watching the way he was just gingerly picking at his food then slowly eating it.

Namikaze Nohara closed her eyes and shook her head slightly.

"How did the mission go, Minato?" She questioned. No emotion betrayed her voice, making it hard to see if she was actually interested in knowing or not. Minato blinked after a few seconds, as if only realizing now that his mother had spoken to him. He remained silent for another second or so, before he looked back down at his food.

"It went well..." Minato murmured as he grabbed a small piece of meat with his chopsticks, meekly bringing it up to his mouth and biting into it. Namikaze Touza raised a brow from where he was seated at the dining table. He still held the sake' cup by the edge, the liquid in the white cup barely trembling as he suspended it in midair.

"What happened to your hand?" Touza asked, and then drained the contents of the small dish. Minato stiffened a bit but forced himself to calm down. He tried not to think about the reason he had punched the tree to begin with.

"I just hurt it on the mission... It opened up again today when I went to train..." Minato lied softly, being sure to avoid eye contact with both his parents. Touza refrained himself from snorting. He got up, pushing the chair back at the same time, and corked the sake' bottle. He took the alcohol bottle and the sake' cup, then took his plate with his free hand. Footsteps silence, Touza took the stuff to the kitchen and put them away in an orderly manner, but just left the dirty dish in the water-filled sink.

"Don't be so careless next time." Touza commented dryly as he disappeared up the stairs. Minato nodded even though his dad couldn't see.

"Hai..."

"..." Nohara shook her head, before she got up as well and took her own plate and chopsticks with her to put in the sink. "Are you done?"

"Uhm... Yeah..." Minato's shoulders slumped when he sighed softly once more. He pushed his seat out and got to his feet, carrying the half-finished plate to his mother. She just took it wordlessly, dumping the food into the trash bin and then taking her place in front of the sink, turning the faucet on and beginning to wash the dishes. Minato stared at her back for several moments and then turned to leave the room, remembering to take his sword with him.

"Clear out the table mats." Nohara commented over the running water without so much as glimpsing over her shoulder. Minato stopped halfway up the stairs. Sighing loudly this time, he turned back around and trailed onto the first floor. He quickly folded and put away the said mats, then went up to his room and closed the door behind him.

Minato stepped over the bag he had taken on the mission, which he had dumped lazily on the floor in the middle of his room. He allowed his sword to clatter to the floor and then just climbed onto his bed settling face down on his stomach.

Well at least he got past his parents. Not like they would ask him what was wrong, anyway. They've just been rather distant ever since Minato became a genin.

The Chuunin just remained still, but soon found it hard to breathe and rolled onto his back. Blue eyes stared up blankly at the ceiling, several words rewinding and playing in his mind unwillingly.

_"Not deal with it at all and just live with the sadness of not being able to have them your whole life..."_

"..." Minato continued to stare at his ceiling. Barely noticing the lighting changes in his room.

The sun was completely gone and leaving its light to be drowned out by the night as well. Soon the whole sky was a dark, dark navy, almost black, with stars dimly sparkling with the moonlight at their sides. Minato's room grew darker with the only sources of light being from the moon and nearby streetlights that came in through his windows. He continued to lie on his ebony bed, feeling empty inside. Blue eyes continued to stare. Stare. Stare. Stare. At nothing.

Minato slowly turned his head to look at the door. He heard the water turn off, the pipes that were hidden within the walls shifting. The corner of his mouth twitched, before he slid off his bed and loped over to one of his drawers. He pulled it open and just blindly grabbed a baggy shirt, old sweatpants, as well as one of his boxers. Minato shouldered the drawer shut and then trailed acrossed his room, stumbling over his bag as he did. He grumbled lightly but regained his balance, taking hold of the doorknob and then pulling the door open.

He slipped down the dark hallway and then into another room. He lived in the house his whole life to know where the light switch was. So he flicked the lights on and then closed the door behind him. The floor was still damp and the mirror was fogged from when he father took a shower just a minute ago, one of the towels on the rack gone. Minato sighed a bit and dumped his night clothes on the counter, then shifted to remove his current clothing.

He caught his reflection in the mirror, then reached over to run his hand across the surface to remove the fog. Blank blue eyes stared back at him once more, though the lines under his eyes were more clearly visible in the mirror. The reflection followed in perfect timing as Minato frowned sadly, before he turned his head away and stripped off the rest of his clothing then stepping into the shower. He pulled the curtain with one hand and turned the handle with the other, feeling the hot water jet onto his head.

Minato drew in a hiss at the high-temperature. But he soon grew used to it, lowering his head and closing his eyes to let the water soak him. Minato inhaled the warm air and exhaled, his breath slightly visible against the light steam from the water. He slowly opened his eyes and saw his soaked hair framing his vision.

Minato lifted his head and shook it a bit, letting the water drops hit the tiled wall as well as the waterproof curtain. Exhaling a soft sigh, he closed his eyes once more and tilted his head upwards, holding his breath and then running his hand over his face then through his hair. Exhaling, Minato cracked his eyes open against the water, before he extended his arm backwards to grab the soap and start cleaning himself.

Nearly half an hour later the door to the bathroom opened and the lights turned off. Minato left the door open to let the cool air into the heated room. He sighed and pulled the small towel over his soaked hair, trailing down the hallway to head down the stairs. He jumped the last two steps and landed silently on the wooden flooring. The hot shower obviously did him some good. He felt a bit more refreshed and clean. His head was a bit more cleared, though still filled with sad, unwanted thoughts.

Frowning slightly, Minato trailed into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. His body as well as the counter behind him was instantly illuminated with a pale yellow light that came from inside. His retinas narrowed unconsciously at the suddenly light, though Minato ignored this and just pulled out a bottle of water. He pushed the fridge door shut with his foot and then trailed back up the stairs.

He closed the door to his room shut silently behind him. Then he used his foot to lazily move his bag aside by his closet. Minato unscrewed the small bottle and a sip of the cold water, before he capped it again. He silently walked towards one of his windows and opened it. He was instantly greeted with the cold night breeze, but he ignored it and easily lifted himself up onto the sill using one hand.

Minato stepped out onto the wooden roof of the porch, shifting to sit down and lean back against his outer wall of his room. He placed the water bottle on the roof besides him, staring up at the star-speckled sky. Another breeze rolled by, ruffling his baggy night clothes as well as shifted the towel that hung limply on his head. He tried to focus on something other than what happened that afternoon, so he searched the night for some of the constellations that he vaguely knew.

Though he could only spot the _Hokuto Shichisei _- or the Big Dipper, among the clutter of stars.

Minato gave up on searching and sighed. He shifted a bit and continued to lean back against the wall then pulled the damp towel over his eyes as he replaced the afternoon events in his head.

He drew in a sharp breath and felt his chest tighten, his shoulders tensing.

So Kushina liked _Fugaku_?

Minato pulled back the small towel over his head again, blue eyes shifting back up to the sky. He had shedded most of his tears, though a few stray ones managed to run down his cheeks. He sighed a bit and hung his head.

_If that's the case, then I should probably try and get over Kushina-san..._ Minato thought to himself, blue eyes staring down blankly at the wooden tiles beneath him. Folding his arms atop his knees, he buried his face in his arms.

_It's easier said than done._

* * *

Kushina had a hard time sleeping that night.

After she had taken a shower, she watered her potted flowers and gave Daylian a chance to take a bath as well. Then the two had a pointless argument, which was one of the many they had back in Uzu. It would have looked ridiculous through the eyes of most people, considering that a red-haired kunoichi was arguing with a talking black wolf. Or a 'mutt' as Kushina called. (The whole wolf/mutt deal was also part of their pointless and random argument.) Kushina gave up on the argument and allowed her step-brother to taste the sweet flavor of victory, then crawled into bed after turning off the lights.

She'd fallen asleep for an hour or so (she also mentally noted that they had to buy a clock sometime soon), and then woken up. Now Kushina was just lying in the single bed staring at the ceiling. She was wondering why she couldn't sleep- considering that a couple of hours ago she was dead exhausted. Kushina honestly expected to wake up in the middle of the afternoon the next day.

So, Kushina decided to just think about the events that day, hoping that she would nod off in the middle of her thinking.

Her conversation with Sae that afternoon stood out the most.

Kushina grumbled under her breath and rested her arm across her stomach. She could feel blood rushing up to her cheeks as she recalled how Sae suggested that she went out with Minato. She blushed harder and frowned a bit. They were just like siblings... right?

The kunoichi groaned and flailed thrashed against the bed in a flustered manner. After a few seconds she flopped her limbs back onto the bed, her lip quivering as she stared back at the ceiling.

"... Want to talk about it?"

Kushina froze for a second, and then slowly turned her head to look over at the side of the bed. She could just barely make out Daylian's fur in the darkness. He was curled up on the bedside, resting his head on his large paws. Violet eyes glowed slightly against the night, shifting to look at the bed.

"Uhm... No?" Kushina grumbled. She could hear the wolf grunt.

"You sure? 'Cuz the only time you thrash around like that is when you have something in your mind, you're fighting someone in your dream, or you wet the bed." Daylian snorted at the last part. Kushina sat up at the last comment, throwing out her lower lip in an angry pout.

"I do not wet the bed, datte'sa!" She hissed. Her fingers curled into fists around the bed sheets. Daylian flicked his tail. The movement was audible since he swept it against the floor.

"It was a joke... And you used to wet the bed, I meant."

Kushina sputtered at this. "I did not!!"

"You so did." Daylian lifted his head to look at her, before he smirked, fangs visible. "I remember that you used to try and blame it on the 'rain coming in through the window'." He snorted softly again then rested his head back onto his paws. Kushina growled in frustration and flopped back onto the bed, being sure to turn her back to the wolf.

She glared out the window for a few seconds, before her expression softened. Just past the forget-me-nots on the windowsill, Kushina could see the moon lingering in the sky, bathing the village in its moonlight. The very room was illuminated by the moonlight as well. The kunoichi sighed softly, enjoying how the flowers took on a silver and black coloring in the night.

"... What's really the problem?" Kushina heard Daylian mutter.

Kushina didn't reply for a few seconds, then closed her eyes and clutched the bed sheet. "I just can't sleep."

"Is there something on your mind?"

"... Yeah." Kushina kept her eyes closed. "What my matchmaker friend said..."

"..." A snort could be heard from the floor. "Keep going..."

"She just said that I would look... cute... with this one guy I know." She muttered the c-word. Kushina turned red, and silently thanked that it was dark and that Daylian was sleeping on the floor.

"... And do you like this guy?" Daylian asked. Kushina blinked at this question, then she slowly relaxed and thought about it. Did she? Kushina closed her eyes and sighed softly. She recalled all of the memories she had with Minato, right down to the part where he had shielded her from the explosive the rogue leader than thrown. Kushina had to admit that having his arm around her waist felt nice. And Minato had used his own body as a shield to protect her incase the bomb was large.

It was a good change to have someone protecting her for a change. For a few weeks shes had to protect herself… from the sadness of losing her village as well as most other things.

Kushina opened her eyes.

"... Yeah... I think I do..."

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **Haa... I'm sorry, you guys. But you guys know I love to beat around that bush. xD' Please bear with me just a bit longer...!  
Oh, and for Daylian's age... I'd probably give a rough estimate of sixteen or seventeen. Around that general area. Kushina, Minato and the others in their age group are thirteen-fourteen. Fugaku, I pictured, to be about a year older than Minato guys... Hizashi is definitely a year older... And so forth. -scratches head- To answer the question asked in a review. o.o

Excuse me if Nohara and Touza's name sound odd or stupid. :c They were completely randomly selected, though Touza's name has something to do with water, I know that... -scratches head- Current, I think? (Lul, Ocean-Wind Current. xD)  
Uhm. Oh yeah. In regards to the constellation-thing-part. In Asia, it's more known as the "Northern Dipper"... But I didn't want to confuse any of you, so... blah. -sweatdrop-

And I'd like to say that damn, I'm on a roll this month or something. xD And thanks again for the reviews! ;-;


	12. How You Remind Me

**Chapter XII: How You Remind Me**

Kushina found herself upside-down on the floor the following morning.

It confused her when she first woke up, since everything appeared the wrong way. She groaned and slowly turned her head to look up, finding that her legs were still on the bed, but her shoulders and head were on the floor. Kushina sighed and let her arms drop down onto the floor as well, wondering how she would be able to get right-side up without hurting herself in any way. Sighing, she allowed the lower-half of her body to slide to the side, only succeeding in landing roughly onto the wooden flooring. Kushina grunted then held still, deciding to lay there for a few moments to examine how sore her body was.

She finally got up, then stumbled a bit when the blood rushed back down to the rest of her body. Kushina groaned and held her head for a moment, closing her eyes so that she wouldn't see the room rocking back and forth.

"Finally awake?"

Kushina's eyelids fluttered open, staring dazedly at nothing for a few moments to let her eyes adjust. She groaned once more and rubbed her temple, lowering her left hand down to her side before she looked up. Daylian was staring at her over his shoulder, hands raised to hold the small knobs of the cabinets overhead. He wore the same clothing he wore when they first met- the long black jacket draping his shoulders and the equally-black baggy pants that went down to his ankles. Though the bandages were no longer there, the wounds having healed the day he went to the hospital.

"Uhm... Yeah... If you're looking for food-"

"There aren't any, yeah. I know." Daylian grumbled as he swung his head back to the front, staring with disappointment at the empty cabinet in front of his violet eyes. He swung the doors shut and pulled his hands off the silver knobs, turning to look back at Kushina.

"I'm going to head out, then..." Daylian murmured. Kushina's eyes showed how puzzled she was.

"What're you gonna-"

"Look for a job." Daylian answered instantly, already making way towards the door. The kunoichi's eyes widened that time, and she stepped forward as if about to stop him.

"Wait, no... You should still be resting, Da-nii-san..." Kushina murmured. She drowsily clutched his jacket sleeve and tilted her head to look up at him. "You're still..."

Daylian shook his head. "No I'm not.." He replied. "I told you, I'm fine... And we need money, 'Shina." He pointed out the obvious. "Otherwise we'll starve within a couple of weeks... We might be able to live off water for a while, but that won't do us much good."

Kushina looked down and slowly released his jacket. His tone sounded so _grim._

He had every right to sound that way. They were facing reality now... Family lost. Home lost. A new home found, yet food was scarce and needed. And their clothing would wear down eventually. Kushina looked back up at him and opened her mouth.

"No you won't!" Daylian interjected as he folded his arms across his bare chest. "I'm your guardian now, 'Shina. _I_ should be taking care of _you_. Let me worry about the jobs, a'ight?"

Kushina closed her mouth, then opened it a second time to protest. "I can't just sit back like some spoiled brat, dattebayo!" She was surprised that she wasn't cut off by Daylian this time. "As corny as I'm about to sound, but we're in this together! We suffer together, we work together, and we'll live together, got it?!"

The corner of Daylian's mouth twitched. Violet optics gazed down at her, before softening in understanding, yet still held a somewhat stern look. "You're still just a kid, 'Shina... And you're only a kid once. Just enjoy life while you can. Because being a grown-up sucks, frankly enough." He pretended to kick a rock. Though he looked up and grinned. "See what my age got me into? Now I have to look after the bed-wetter."

A blush flared Kushina's cheeks and she balled her hands into fists to punch Daylian childishly a couple of times. "I am not a bed-wetter, 'tebayo!!"

Daylian continued to grin, but he backed up slyly and placed his hand on the doorknob behind him. "Okay, then... So you're not a bed-wetter anymore." He turned the knob. "But now you moan in your sleep like you're fantasizing about the guy you like!" He backed up suddenly and the door opened, flinging himself into the sunlight and darting down the stairs. Kushina's eyes widened and she darted outside to stand at the top of the stairs.

"_What_?!" She demanded. "No I..! You liar! Daylian-nii-san!!" Kushina yelled loudly into the morning. She gripped the cold metal railings, which began to sting her palms. The older Uzu nin was laughing snidely, but continued running and disappeared down the streets. Kushina puffed her cheeks up with embarrassment, and released the railings to storm back into the room. She made sure to slam the door loudly, too. Once Kushina slammed the door shut, she stifled a scream and flailed her hands in a flustered manner, before she covered her face.

_I do _not_ fantasize about...!_

Kushina bit her lip and kept her face buried in her palms, before she drew in a hiss and pulled her head away. Cold hands. Didn't want to do that again..

Kushina shook her head, trailing over to the drawer to dig for her scroll. She unrolled it and placed her palm on the seal formula and pulled her hand back.

Nothing.

Kushina blinked and placed her palm flat on the seal once more and waited for several moments. She groaned and partially covered her face with her hand. That was pretty much it with the clothing for her. She had to recycle the set of clothes she was wearing the previous days. The kunoichi sighed and leaned over to pull out the drawer, taking out the set of clothes she wore on the mission. Rather dusty, though she could probably wear them for another half a week or so.

Shaking her head, she got up and changed out of her baggy pajamas and into the clothes she picked up. Kushina dumped the night shirt and pants into the drawer and lowered to store the useless scroll as well. She wordlessly closed the drawer and got up, forcing her stomach to shut up. Kushina turned slightly and swept her arm across the table, picking up the gloves given to her by her brother.

She grumbled as she slipped them on. Her face turned red once more, though she continued to frown and grumble. Kushina growled this time and slapped her cheeks lightly a few times. She didn't even recall having a dream last night. Much less, even falling asleep to begin with.

The kunoichi grumbled as she trailed into the bathroom, and flinched when she saw how messy her hair was.

"Yeesh..." She grumbled to herself, running her fingers through her red hair a few times. She flinched when her fingers struck a few knots, before she managed to hastily comb through them. Kushina shook her head a bit and looked back into the mirror. Her hair was neat again and she grinned. Her brother called it 'the amazing ability to make your hair go back to normal' back in Uzu. Someone could mess up her hair and all she had to do was shake her head like some dog and it would go back to normal. Kushina gathered her hair and pulled it back, seeing how she would look in a ponytail. She grimaced a bit and shook her head, letting her hair lightly brush her shoulders. Her hair wasn't long enough for a ponytail yet.

Kushina shrugged slightly then reached for the small toothbrush that was resting in a plastic cup, running it under the water before she started to clean her teeth. She halted in mid-stroke, suddenly realizing something.

Where the _hell_ did the toothbrush come from?

The kunoichi now held the brush with her fingertips, as if expecting it to blow up any second. She pulled it out of her mouth and soon caught sight of the small plastic label on the handle. Ku-shi-na. She allowed her shoulders to drop as she stared at the small label. _Retsuya-san..._ Sighing softly, Kushina put the brush back in her mouth and cleaned her teeth, spat, then rinsed. She ran her tongue along her front teeth and nodded with satisfactory before she spun on her heels to leave the bathroom.

Kushina examined the room from the doorway and soon noted some of the messiness of it from when Daylian was going through the cabinets in search of food. She frowned slightly moved forward into the room to clean the place up. Starting by shutting the cabinets that remained open or weren't completely closed. Kushina continued to trail around around the room, mindlessly cleaning up the place and finally moving to her messy bed. The bed sheet was half off the bed, most likely from when Kushina was off the furniture herself.

_"But now you moan like you're fantasizing about the guy you like!" _

Kushina groaned and buried her face in the sheet then proceeded to scream into it. She continued screaming into the sheet until her lungs ran out of air, and she flopped forward onto the bed to rest.

Did she even have a dream last night?

Or was Daylian just teasing her?

Kushina grumbled, her fingers curling around the bed sheet as she turned her head to breathe in fresh air. She didn't _ask_ to like _Minato_.

_It just happened_. The kunoichi thought silently. Her breathing rate returned to normal and she pushed herself back onto the floor.

Okay, so maybe she liked him. Kushina sighed as she started fixing the bed dazedly. So what now?

After she straightened the bed, Kushina straightened herself and then trailed over to the counter to grab the recycled ramen cup she used to water her plants. She turned the faucet and let water pool into the styrofoam cup, before she leaned across the counter to water the bamboo plant sitting on the window sill. Kushina trailed around the rooms and paused before one of the pots. A small bud started to grow from the dirt. She grinned lightly and carefully added some water, before she moved to water the forget-me-nots on the windowsill by her bed.

Almost as soon as Kushina turned around to put the recycled cup back by the sink, she groaned. "So what am I supposed to do?" She growled to herself, whirling around on her heels to head for the door. As she walked by she grabbed the key that was resting on the counter.

"Just ask him out or something, 'tebayo?" Kushina continued to grumble, even as she locked the door and trailed down the stairs. "..." She fell silent with a sigh then hung her head. She halted half way down the stairs with her hand barely skimming the cold railing. Her eyes stared down at the damp steps below her before yet another sigh escaped her.

Kushina shook her head then stepped down onto the ground level, heading to one of the doors and leaning towards it to listen for any sounds. There were voices, if not muffled by the door and walls between her and the sources. She tried to push aside any thought of Minato that plagued her mind, with little success, sighed and knocked on the door lightly a couple of times. The voices stopped. Some shuffling against the floor inside the apartment was barely audible, though Kushina was able to hear it. The door opened a couple of seconds later.

Like usual, Retsuya opened the door to Kushina lowered in a bow.

"... Ohayo gozaimasu, Kushina-chan." Retsuya greeted with a smile. Kushina remained in her bow, staring down at her feet as well as the ground beneath them.

"You're too kind, Retsuya-san, dattebayo..." Kushina murmured. "I... won't be able to live with myself if I don't do anything in return..."

"... If that's the case, then maybe you'd like to run a few errands for me today?"

"Yes, please..." Kushina straightened herself after she mumbled her reply. Retsuya continued to smile softly. She motioned with her hand that she would be back, then closed the door quietly behind her to go back into the house. The kunoichi only nodded her head then soon shook it with another sigh.

Kushina moved to lean against the wall, raising her hand to rub her temples when more undesired thoughts came to mind. God, is this what it's like to _like_ someone? Kinda hard to focus on things. Yet she had a small yearning that wanted to be with a certain blond-haired Chuunin.

The door opening cut through some of Kushina's thoughts, and Retsuya came out with some slips of paper. The elderly woman's eyes skimmed the writing that was jotted down on the paper before she nodded and dug in the pockets of her apron. While she searched her pockets, Retsuya handed Kushina the pieces of paper, whom was beginning to read the list. Kitchen utensils, paper, a couple of novels, food.

_Food._ Kushina had to stop her mouth from watering. So she went through some of the other lists instead and soon came upon a small, simple map. She looked up at Retsuya, whom was counting some yen in her hands.

"Just so you don't get lost, Kushina-chan." Retsuya smiled before she handed the money to the red-haired kunoichi. Kushina slowly nodded and pocketed the money.

"So that's all, then, 'tebayo?" Kushina asked. Retsuya nodded.

"Hai... oh, and Kushina-chan? Try not to yell in the morning... Some of the neighbors might end up complaining." Retsuya chuckled nervously. Kushina blushed with embarrassment as she recalled the reason for yelling at Daylian to begin with.

"Oh... sorry..."

"It's no problem... Just try be more quiet in the future."

Kushina nodded again and murmured another apology, adding a bow to it before she left to proceed with the errands.

She sighed softly as she went through the list again, taking the small hand-drawn map and skimming it as well. The map wasn't detailed, but it was good enough for Kushina to understand. Retsuya even drew dots and labeled the store names that Kushina would be visiting. She shrugged and went through the maps again. She might as well went for the lighter items first, which was also in the farthest store from the apartment complex. Kushina yawned and held the map in her right hand, trailing down the streets and weaving around anyone who was too lazy to move out of her way. Well, it wasn't exactly a job, but it gave her and Daylian a place to stay, at least. So definitely cross shelter off the list.

Kushina rubbed the back of her neck using her left hand, unconsciously spinning around a drunk that was stumbling back to his home. The drunkard barely noticed, and neither did Kushina, since she was so wrapped up in her thoughts. A groan escaped her as she picked up the pace.

She wanted to get to the stores quickly. Hopefully she would have a hard time finding the items, wanting to focus on something other than _him_.

As the morning slowly began to drag on, more and more villagers came out and walked up and down the streets for their own errands. Kushina easily slipped past most of the larger crowds, squinting at the intense morning sunlight. She paused in the middle of the street and took another look at the name of the shop that was scribble onto the map. There were a few kanji letters so it took Kushina a few moments to properly get the store's name correct. Kushina glimpsed down at the map, looked back at the actual shop, then stifled a shrug and entered.

It was one of those basic general stores.

Kushina skimmed the list again, soon moving deep into the store and trailing down the small isles in search of the items.

She found it incredibly difficult to not use Retsuya's money to purchase food for her own.

They were just taunting her. Rows upon rows of them. From small hard candies, to biscuits, wrapped onigiri and down to small package meals ready to be consumed. Kushina could slowly feel herself beginning to grow lightheaded from the lack of food. She forced her gut to shut up and proceeded to buying what was only on the list, not wanting to break Retsuya's trust on her. After all, doing the elderly woman's errands was the only reason they were allowed to stay in the apartment without paying any fees.

Yet...

It was hard to resist the calling... She was walking around with _money_ in her pockets and food _surrounding_ her. Kushina whimpered softly when her stomach grumbled in protest. She would always finger the money in her pocket and stare at the food, but then she would remember that Retsuya was trusting her, so she walked on with the items in the small basket that she received upon entering the store. She payed for the items and took the change, stuffing it in her pockets and moving on to the next stores.

The process was repeated for the rest of the shops, with the exception of the one silverware store (where Kushina was being real careful not to break anything). Each of them had some kind of food or snacks involved, tempting Kushina to buy her own food with Retsuya's money.

She had to admit that she was close to cracking at one of the stores, but she quickly bashed her head into a nearby rack, apologized to the clerk, and staggered out.

Now she was trailing down the streets with several plastic bags in each hand, very little quantity of the money Retsuya had given her remaining in her pocket. The food still taunted her as she went along, several stands owners yelling out to the villagers about how good or fresh their food was. Kushina began watering at the mouth once more. She started to grow light-headed and sighed shakily. Kushina trailed her gaze up and instantly looked down, regretting that she had looked up. The sun was directly overhead, indicating that it was noon.

Kushina thought for a few moments, then groaned when she got a headache. What she needed was food so that her brain could function correctly without screaming "Give me food!" every sentence. Shaking her head, Kushina continued down the streets, doing her best to ignore the vendors that lined the side of the dirt road.

Her hard work payed off when she got back to the apartment.

"I was beginning to worry about you, Kushina-chan." Retsuya still managed to say that with her usual smile. "It took you a few hours, so I was about to send out my husband to go look for you..."

Kushina mumbled under her breath as she handed the plastic bags to the landlady one by one. Retsuya chuckled with amusement. She took the bags and thanked Kushina each time. Though she looked confused when Kushina murmured about the change.

"Oh... I thought you were going to go buy yourself some breakfast, Kushina-chan..."

Kushina's mouth dropped in response. "What...? No, I couldn't, dattebayo... It's your money, Retsuya-san..." Kushina protested, even though she was tempted to just turn around and run to one of the food stands that lined the streets. Retsuya shook her head.

"Well we can't have you starving to death, can we?" Retsuya pointed out. Kushina lowered her head, easily defeated due to the fact that she was in fact starving. She pulled out the two remaining paper yen as well as the handful of coins to count them.

"Do you think this'll get me?" She questioned. Retsuya examined the remaining change before she thought.

"Maybe about three or four dango sticks at the most?"

"Perfect... At least Daylian-nii will have something to eat when he gets back..." Kushina murmured under her breath, pocketing the money once more. Retsuya looked confused once more.

"Who is...?"

"Oh... My brother.. by law." Kushina added. "He's out looking for a job.. to get us money, datte'sa..." The kunoichi explained with another sigh. Retsuya blinked.

"If your brother is here with you, then I'll give you some more money-"

"No! No.. it's okay... We're already staying here practically for free, Retsuya-san..." Kushina mumbled. "If you give us money... it won't be fair to the other people renting the place..."

"..." Retsuya sighed softly. But her warming smile returned once more. "Well go on and buy yourself some food, Kushina-chan... I could hear your stomach growling from upstairs.. just be sure your brother gets some food as well.."

Kushina nodded, feeling herself turning red before she spun around on her heels. The very thought of getting food gave her enough energy to run to one of the vendors. She grinned at the thought, though now her stomach was protesting for her to hurry the hell up.

* * *

The days were going by rather slow.

Minato found himself loping around the house for the past two days, unable to find anything to do. Sure, he went to the training grounds for a couple of hours, but he would soon feel unmotivated to further himself in his shinobi career so he'd return home. There were no summons for any missions, and Minato knew he wouldn't be able to focus properly on it anyway. He even found it hard to work on his new jutsus. His feelings for Kushina would just get in the way constantly.

That afternoon he was just lying on his bed, his left arm and leg hanging off the side of the furniture limply. Blue eyes just stared at his door blankly. The light ticking of his clock was audible, though Minato wasn't counting how many clicks there were. He looked up and saw that only five minutes had passed since he last looked at the black-and-white clock. Minato sighed and dropped his head back onto his pillow, burying his face in it for a while.

Why was it so hard to get over her?

He turned his head so that he was resting on his cheek rather than his face.

Why was he drawn to her to begin with?

There were plenty of other girls in the village.. why her?

She has a brash personality. Tomboyish and talks like a guy.

Yet there was something about her that made Minato drawn to her. The way she would get flustered and blush also showed that she was a girl as well... Even during the mission, when she cried and vented to him... There was just some quality about her...

Though Minato didn't know what it was.

It could have been those 'love-at-first-sights' that he's heard of. Though he shook his head at the thought. Minato knew he started liking her a little after they first met...

At least he admitted that he did like her... a lot.

Love?

Minato's right hand gripped the corner of his pillow, and he turned his head to hide his blush from no one. Love is such a strong word... yet... did he?

Minato groaned in frustration and shifted to rest on his side. Though he forgot he was laying on the edge of his bed and rolled right off it, landing on his back on the polished wooden floor with a grunt. Minato made no move to get up, only remaining on the floor and staring up at the ceiling. His face was still red- he could feel it.

So he _loved_ her...

Yet she liked Fugaku...

Minato was set on trying to get over her... to let her go. For the past two days he had been trying to do so, but failed miserably.

He sighed softly. Minato turned a bit to push himself off the ground, feeling his shoulder and back pop as he did. He flinched but ignored it once he sat up. Minato sat there for several moments, then hauled himself onto his feet and trailed to his door. The Chuunin ran his fingers through his hair to straighten it out a bit and then patted the dust from his lower back and below. He shook his head and trailed down the stairs, footsteps barely audible in the silence of the house. He turned to look at the dining table, and jumped when he saw his parents there.

Touza looked up. His arms were crossed and his expression was dead serious. Nohara and Touza both shifted their chairs so that they faced the direction of their son. Minato shifted when he saw no food on the table, but grew more and more uncomfortable when his parents were frowning.

"Otou-san...? Okaa-san...?" Minato questioned hesitantly.

Touza was the first to reply.

"We need to talk, Minato." He muttered with his arms still folded across his vest-covered chest. Nohara closed her black eyes and nodded in agreement.

"Sit down..."

Minato hesitantly nodded. He gingerly stepped forward and pulled his chair out from under the table. Unconsciously, he pulled it out an inch or so further away from usual and sat down, nervous blue eyes flitting back and forth between his parents. Touza stared at him unblinkingly, eyes giving away no emotion.

"We're going to discuss the 25th Shinobi Rule..." Touza muttered as his gaze sharpened to match his serious tone. Minato flinched and grimaced inwardly. _Oh shit..._

"And not to mention your sudden laziness, Minato." Nohara added in from where she sat across the table from Touza. "You've been doing nothing but loping around the house for two days straight, with the exception of going out for only a couple of hours then returning straight home."

"..." Minato remained silent as he tried to make his expression as blank as possible. He sunk a bit into his chair.

"What kind of shinobi cries himself to sleep, Minato?" Touza growled as he initiated the 'discussion'. Minato's eyes widened for that instant, but he forced them to return to normal. Touza of course, caught the change in expression.

"We understand that liking someone is new, but there is no need for a shinobi to cry over such matters..." Nohara murmured. Much like Touza, she gave away no emotion, hiding whether she was actually concerned for Minato or not.

Minato could feel the blood draining from his face and he sunk further into his chair, to the point where the back of his head was against the backrest.

"Otou-san... okaa-san... I..."

"You what?" Touza growled as he got to his feet. Minato instantly tensed at the motion and placed his feet on the ground, preparing himself for any worst-case scenario.

"I'm... I'm sorry...!" The blond couldn't hide the panic that seeped into his voice.

"Sorry does not make up for ones actions, Minato." Nohara remained seated, her arms resting on her lap while her eyes were closed. "If a shinobi were to fail a mission vital to the village, a single five-lettered word will not make up for the loss."

Minato's breathing started to grow more sharp, blue eyes widening and looking up at his father again. "What are you...?"

Before Minato knew it, he was suddenly seized hold by the collar of his shirt and yanked off his chair. Blue eyes narrowed, clearly underestimating the speed his aging father had. He wanted to run, but at the same time he knew his father was just going to be more angry.

"Shinobi must never show their tears, their fears, their sorrows, their emotions." Touza hissed as he glared right into Minato's blue eyes. The Chuunin slowly shook his head, now beginning to struck to get out of his father's grip. Not again.

A hand was suddenly placed on Touza's wrist, causing the man to snap his gaze over to the side. Minato froze and stared at the newcomer's hand, trailing up his arm and eventually to the shoulder. From the corner of his eye, Minato could see the spiked white hair that trailed down Jiraiya's face.

"Hey, I think that's enough..." Jiraiya growled in response. Touza's eyes narrowed, though he released Minato's shirt and snapped his hand out of Jiraiya's grip. The blond stumbled when he felt the floor beneath his feet, backing up to stand a couple of paces behind his sensei. Jiraiya's own black eyes were narrowed against Touza's. The Gama Sennin finally tore his gaze away, turning to look back at Minato.

"Pack some of your things... we're leaving."

"...?!" Minato looked clearly confused at the sudden order. Nohara looked up from where she was still seated.

"And just where do you intend on taking Minato?" She questioned calmly. Jiraiya turned to look back at her for a moment.

"To my place, where else?" He replied back coolly. Jiraiya moved and placed a hand on Minato's shoulder, steering him in the direction of the stairs. "Go on. I'll be waiting down here." Jiraiya murmured before shooting a glare back at Touza.

Minato hesitantly nodded and trailed up the stairs. He was half expecting an explosion to sound as soon as he reached the top step, though raised voices were in replacement. Jiraiya and Touza were arguing. Minato did his best to suppress a violent shudder before he trailed to his room. Even there, the yells were audible. So he packed some stuff, clothes, weapons, scrolls, and his hitai-ate. The basics. He hesitantly took his sword and slung it onto one shoulder, his bag resting on the other.

".. for shinobi to completely purge themselves of emotion...! It's unhealthy and impossible!" Jiraiya was growling in Touza's face when Minato reached the bottom of the stairs. He looked up when he heard Minato approaching, then spun around and lead the blond towards the door.

"I think we're done here..."

"..." Touza growled a bit, but remained on the spot. Minato flinched when his parents made no move to stop him or Jiraiya. He lowered his head and sighed softly, allowing Jiraiya to steer him out the door. The white-haired sensei closed the door behind them and continued to lead Minato.

"Sorry, 'Nato..."

"... It's okay, sensei..." Minato murmured in response. His blue eyes were still staring at the ground. "Otou-san and Okaa-san never... really liked me ever since I joined the Academy..."

"..." Jiraiya looked down at Minato, before he shook his head and patted the Chuunin's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Minato... I honestly thought you had a chance with Kushina... I didn't think it'd effect you this much..."

"It's not your fault, sensei..." Minato mumbled unconsciously. "It's my fault for letting it get to me..."

"..." Jiraiya sighed and steered Minato around a corner. He remained silent for a while, but spoke. "Rejection makes a man stronger, Minato... Frankly, in a way, I can relate to you..."

Minato slowly blinked and turned to look up at his sensei. "...?"

"Yeah... Got rejected by Tsunade-hime each time... And then she'd punch my gut and walk away..." Jiraiya chuckled painfully as he recalled his memories. He placed his free hand over his stomach as if visualizing the pain.

Minato lowered his head and sighed softly. "You have it worse compared to me... I shouldn't be moping around like this..."

Jiraiya shook is head no. "You have every right to, Minato... It's your first love, and I kinda pressured you into telling her..."

"... I.. never told her, sensei." Minato admitted. "I overheard her talking with Inosae-san... Kushina-san likes another guy..."

"Oh geez..." Jiraiya flinched. "Sorry to hear that, 'Nato..."

"It's alright..." Minato stifled another sigh. "And now my parents-"

"It's alright, kiddo... You don't need to worry about _those two_ for now..."

"..." Minato nodded slowly, but raised his hands and wiped his eyes, stifling a choked sob.

"I guess they're second and third on the list of people whom don't love me..."

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **I am _not satisfied_ with some parts of this chapter, so I'm sorry that those parts make you go 'Okay wtf is this?' or whatever reaction... But writer's block came over with a pillow case full of bricks and smacked me upside the head with it... big time. x.x

And I'm sorry that this update is rather late. D:  
But I just got swamped by sudden essays and reports at school... why do teachers insist on dumping reports before any kind of major break? Dx It's just so argh irritating.

... and... sorry for any of those who hate emo people. :c I know, I know. The last line was totally emo of Minato, I'm sorry. But frankly, I'm being realistic... I'm even going so far as using my own experiences in rejection to make this story come to life. -scratches head-

I always have to thank people for the reviews. D: Because you guys continue to support me and it makes me happy. Yes it does.


	13. Cat and Mouse

**Chapter XIII: Cat and Mouse**

Coins clattered to the wooden floor, paper yen fluttering moments after. Daylian held the tin can childishly over his head, his legs crossed while violet eyes stared at the small pile of money before them. Kushina sat cross-legged as well, her own gaze staring intently on the money. A heavy silence filled the apartment room as the two Uzu nin stared and stared.

Daylian finally placed their small, makeshift bank on the floor, which echoed softly around the room with a light _clink_. He reached out and organized the smaller yen first, then picked up the paper bills and set them in order as well. He murmured softly to himself, lips barely moving as he counted the money. He stopped once he counted it all and set it back on the floor again. Violet eyes met red-brown ones.

"... We are _so_ eating tonight!!"

Kushina's eyes instantly lit up before a wide grin crossed her face. "Yess!! Come on!! Let's go get some ramen or something, 'tebayo!!" The kunoichi was already on her feet and tugging Daylian's arm to get him to stand up. Daylian was grinning as well, already scooping up some of the money and slipping them into the pockets of his jacket. He took the rest and dumped it into the tin can and capped it, then finally got to his feet with Kushina still tugging at his arm.

"Cup ramen for the rest of the week..!" The two chanted in an annoying singsong tone. Hey, if you didn't eat for more than three days, you'd be singing along with them.

Daylian managed to find a simple job that mostly involved him carrying stuff from one place to another. He also persuaded the manager to pay him a bit extra if he could carry twice the regular loads. And to pay him daily, of course..

They raced down the stairs and into the darkening streets, racing past several different people- drunks, club workers, or maybe a family or two out for a last walk of the day. Kushina slowed her pace slightly to watch the family walk by, her head turning to stare at them before she looked back to the front, eyes and expression unreadable. If Daylian noticed, he ignored them.

The two continued down the streets and Daylian eventually took a sharp turn into one store, yanking Kushina along with him. The kunoichi yelped when she got pulled by the back of her shirt, nearly stumbling backwards at the sudden motion. Daylian only grinned at her reaction and then released her to stride down a couple of the aisles. Kushina followed a couple of paces behind with her gaze flickering back and forth to glimpse at the snacks on the shelves.

"Hey, do you remember the ramen we had a while back?" Daylian asked as he spun on his heel, walking backwards a couple of more steps before he slowed to a complete halt. Kushina stopped before him and looked at the shelves packed with instant ramen cups.

"Uhm..." Kushina tried to think, but she was far too distracted from the ramen. Her mouth was already beginning to water and her stomach grumbled softly.

"Screw it, then. Get any kind and make sure they're cheap." As soon as Daylian finished his sentence, he plucked a couple of packages off the shelves and turned to collect a few more.

Kushina refrained herself from scooping up all the ramen cups. Though it took quite a lot of willpower to do so. So she just hastily grabbed a few and gathered them in her arms.

"Okay, I got a whole bunch of cheap ones, nii-" Kushina turned around and blinked when he wasn't there. "Nii-san?" She called and tiptoed to look over the shelves, grumbling when she found that she wasn't tall enough to do so.

"Over here.." Daylian was peering over the shelf, his eyes clearly visible, much to Kushina's annoyance. "I just need to get a couple of more stuff... Meet me at the register."

Kushina looked genuinely confused at this, but she slowly nodded and turned to make way for the said registers. As she went the kunoichi thought of what he would be getting, then frowned and halted.

"Wait, why do you get stuff and I don't, 'tebayo?!" Kushina demanded loudly, hoping that Daylian was able to hear it. She fell silent and waited for a response, which came soon after.

"Because you already got stuff back at the apartment!" Daylian growled from behind. Kushina spun around and soon saw the multiple cup ramens that were stacked atop one another and balancing in one hand, Daylian's other arm was holding things such as soap, shampoo, a cheap plastic toothbrush, and so forth. Kushina stared at the bathroom supplies with a light 'oh' and then trailed her gaze up to the black-haired nin.

"Yeah, I _really_ need to go and clean myself later tonight." Daylian grumbled. He turned slightly and tossed his head in one direction. "Now c'mon, I want to eat and then use up all the hot water."

"What?!"

"It was a joke..."

Kushina frowned and followed him the cash register, placing the food on the counter and dozing as the numbers started coming up. She never liked math anyway. The red-haired kunoichi looked up when Daylian snapped his fingers in front of her eyes to bring her back to reality.

"C'mon..."

The kunoichi blinked once more and then slowly began to grin as she followed him out the store. Every few steps, their pace quickened. Within a few seconds the two were racing down the street, spinning around villagers and maybe jumping over the occasional crates that were being pulled across the road. Kushina was the one that won, eventually. Though she 'only won because she wasn't carrying anything', as Daylian had protested.

"Yeah, yeah. That's what they usually say." Kushina rolled her eyes once she unlocked the door, turning the knobs and entering the apartment. Daylian was still grumbling as he followed her inside. He lazily used his foot to close the door behind him, trailing to the table and dumping the contents of the plastic bags onto the surface.

Kushina instantly snatched one of the ramen cups and tore the outer plastic off. She quickly skimmed the instructions then snorted when it was the same as any other. 'Open the paper top half way and add flavor powder', 'pour water to line and replace top'.. 'Stick in microwave for two minutes'

'Enjoy'.

The last 'instruction' was just an understatement.

The two wolfed down on the food as soon as it was finished cooling. About a minute later, maybe less, the two sat on the floor with the empty styrofoam cups before them. Kushina folded her arms with a sigh, silent admitting to herself that she was still a bit hungry. She turned her head to look at the table of other ramen cups, soon overwhelmed with temptation to open a second one.

"Hey, we gotta save those..." Daylian muttered, as if reading her thoughts. With a grunt he got to his feet and approached the table to scoop most of the food into his arms. The kunoichi grumbled in response as she turned her head, watching him dump the cups into one of the cabinets overhead. While he was trailing around the place, Daylian moved past Kushina and took the small tin can and opened it, dropping the change into it before capping it, placing it back on top the drawer. Kushina continued to sit on the floor and watch him in silence.

"... I hope you're not going to stare at me while I take a shower or anything..." Daylian muttered, breaking the silence, then taking his bathroom supplies. Kushina grimaced and shook her head. She picked up the two ramen cups and then got to her feet.

"Don't eat another one." Daylian warned before he closed the bathroom door shut behind him. Kushina grumbled in response. Though he was right- they had to save the food they had. Shaking her head, Kushina trashed the two cups and then tied the plastic bags in a knot, lazily chucking them onto the counter. She heard the water turn on about half a minute later.

She forced herself to ignore the ramen and flop onto the bed, bouncing a couple of times before she came to rest. Kushina shifted then folded her arms underneath her head to stare blankly out the window, past the forget-me-nots on the windowsill. It was already dark outside, though several lights were visible and barely illuminating streets. The corner of her mouth twitched as her thoughts trailed.

How long has it been since she last saw Minato?

Kushina had to admit that she missed seeing his spiky blond hair. His eyes, which were brilliant as the sky itself...

What she missed most was his grin and his voice.

Or maybe Minato himself.

Kushina groaned and turned over onto her side. She curled up slightly with her hand clutch the bedsheets as well, grumbling unintelligibly to herself. Her cheeks began to hurt from the blood that had rushed up to her face, only making her cringe and curl up more tightly into a type of fetal position.

There was just this _gnawing_ feeling in her chest and part of her stomach. She couldn't quite figure out what it was, though she guessed it had something to do with not seeing Minato for a long period of time.

Sighing lightly, Kushina closed her eyes and calmed down, hoping to drift off to sleep to try and forget..

The attempt wasn't successful.

Kushina sighed. She remained where she was on the bed, staring at the bed sheet beneath her hand, barely making out the little woven stitches that made up the sheet. For now she remained where she was. Recalling each memory she had of Minato and seeing if she could live off the memories alone. Kushina clutched the bed sheet and curled up a bit more tightly. She wanted to see him.

_Needed_ to see him.

* * *

How long had it been since he last saw _her_?

That was Minato's initial thought when he woke up that morning. He opened his eyes to stare at the wood-colored ceiling, before slowly blinking and turning his head to look at the table leg that was visible just outside his sight. He was on the floor. He could feel the carpet as he moved his arms slightly. Minato sighed softly and stiffly sat up, staring at the table and wondering how he hadn't hit it when he fell off the couch.

The blond took a glance out the window, then flopped back onto the couch, sinking in a bit as the air escaped the cushions. It was still dark outside, just before dawn. He turned his head to stare at the cluttered desk across the room, before rolled his eyes slightly and dozed off. His eyes closed and he relaxed, trying to think of how much time has passed since he left his parents' house.

About a week and a half was his final estimate.

So it was probably about two weeks since he last saw Kushina...

Minato sighed and continued to lay on the couch, finding it hard to get up. After a while, the room started to grow lighter, an indication of the rising sun. Minato finally rolled off the couch and onto his feet when he noticed.

He trailed into the bathroom to wash his face and such, before trailing back out to get dressed. He stuffed his night clothes into the bag he took from his house, slipped on his regular clothes, and then walked into the small kitchen to look for something to eat.

Minato had to admit that it wasn't bad living at Jiraiya's house. It was a lot better than living with his parents, especially since what happened a little over a week ago. Minato sighed at the memory, remembering how panicked he was at the thought of his own father hitting him. He shook his head and tried to disregard the thought. His parents no longer wanted anything to do with him. He might as well forgot about them as well. The Chuunin searched the cabinets and shook his head when he found nothing but empty snack boxes and maybe a few bottles of sake' here and there.

Minato spun around to search the fridge instead and found food in there. He took out one of the small cases of rice as well as a half-eaten fish, nudged the door shut with his foot, and spun around to heat the things up. Then he began his search for the wooden chopsticks.

That was one of the problems Minato found while living in his sensei's house. Everything was so _unorganized_.

_"Really? I know where everything is, frankly enough..."_ Was what Jiraiya had said in response to Minato's small complaint. The Chuunin shook his head, taking the food back to the living room once he found a pair of chopsticks he could use. He ate his breakfast in silence, beginning to wonder when his sensei was going to return from his mission.

His question was answered as the front door opened.

Jiraiya warily limped into the house and closed the door behind him, his hand by his temple as he sighed. Some bags were visible under his eyes to show his lack of sleep. His clothes were also dirty with a few scratches here and there.

"I'm back.." Jiraiya muttered once he caught sight of the blond on the couch. Minato quickly chewed the mouthful of rice and then swallowed, turning his head to look back at his teacher.

"Welcome back... how'd it go...?"

"They're _really_ startin' to get aggressive now..." Jiraiya muttered gruffly in response. He limped lightly into the kitchen and instantly went to one of the cabinets to pull out a bottle of sake'. Minato looked confused at Jiraiya's reply, scooting over to give the Gama Sennin some room to sit. Jiraiya muttered a thanks after he collapsed onto the couch with a heavy sigh. He uncorked the bottle and removed his hand from his temple, taking a large swig of the alcoholic beverage.

"Got hurt on the mission?" Minato questioned, folding his legs on the couch and proceeding to eat the rest of his breakfast. Jiraiya slowly raised his hand to touch the bandages on his temple.

"Yeah... Them Iwa nin's managed to nick me. Tsunade-hime wouldn't let me walk around, even though it's just a scratch..."

"It is a head wound, sensei." Minato pointed out. Jiraiya sighed and took another long drink.

"What was the mission about, sensei...?" The blond questioned. Jiraiya shook his head. He leaned over to place the sake bottle on the table, then leaned back against the couch with another heavy sigh.

"To try and make the Iwa ninja back off... we've always had a natural enemy in Iwa.. they've been assaulting us on some missions.. more recently, the skirmishes have gotten worse and happening along the borders." Jiraiya muttered. Minato stared at his exhausted sensei.

"How long have these skirmishes been going on...? Sensei...?"

"Mmm... for a while now." Jiraiya massaged his temple lightly. "I think since you were about 12?" Minato blinked.

"That's.. a rather long time... why doesn't anybody know-"

"We've been trying to keep it secret, but they've gotten a lot more aggressive." Jiraiya interrupted. "It was for the villagers' sake, but now Iwa's daring to cross the Kusa borders to try and attack some of the ninja on mission..."

The corner of Minato's mouth twitched. "... What's going to happen...?"

Jiraiya's face grew grim suddenly, and it made Minato nervous. He looked down at the remainder of his breakfast, before he set it on the small table besides Jiraiya's drink in a small offer to his teacher. He didn't feel hungry anymore.

"Sensei...?"

"..." Jiraiya sighed deeply. "They're persisting now more than ever, Minato... We know what's coming, but the country's government isn't really doing anything about it." He scowled as he leaned back to rest his head against the couch. "The skirmishes... they originally involved some of the other countries as well, but it seems more and more like Iwa's really wanting to pick a fight with Konoha."

"... So does that mean...?"

"Keep it to yourself, Minato. We're going to wait around a bit longer and see what happens. That's what Sandaime-sama told us to do." Jiraiya shook his head. He hauled himself to his feet with a light groan, trailing down the hall.

"I'm going to take a bath..."

"Hai..." Minato remained seated for a while longer.

A _war_?

He sighed then finally got to his feet, brushing some of the wrinkles from his clothing then moving to collect his sword. "I'm going out for a while, then, sensei." He announced loudly. Minato got a grunt in response. The blond slung his weighted weapon onto his back and left the house.

If the war really occurred, then doubtless several hundred people would die...

Minato lowered his blue gaze to the ground. It made him wonder if anyone was killed from the border skirmishes. It wasn't impossible- seeing that a lot of things were being kept hidden from the public. Minato shook his head and tried to disregard the thoughts. He supposed the country had every right to keep most things hidden.. the villagers would either panic or talk, and word could reach out to other villages, or other countries.

He shifted his footing and craned his neck slightly. Minato sighed lightly, then lurched forward in a shunshin to get to the training grounds.

If there was going to be a war, then he didn't want to be useless.

Minato soon found himself perched atop the rickety fences that bordered the area. He remained balanced on the old fence, pausing to try and sense if anyone else was in the training grounds. He was disappointed when he felt no other presence. Training with himself was starting to get nowhere, and he wanted to see if his 'sudden laziness', as his parents said, knocked him down a couple of levels or not.

He shifted and jumped down from the fence, landing with a light grunt onto the grass. Minato sighed as he got up to approach the three stumps. The usual.

When he got within a few feet of the stumps, he wordlessly jumped and landed on one. Minato lost his balance for a moment, but managed to regain his footing and stay atop the stump. He sighed a bit once more. He had work to do...

Minato raised his hands to chest level, clasping his hands together in the ram seal then closing his eyes. Drawing in a deep breath and then exhaling, Minato concentrated to mold his chakra.. Yet at the corner of his senses, he could feel something moving..

"Who's there?" He called, his voice breaking through the eerie morning silence that had once hung in the air. Minato turned his head to look, releasing the hand seal and turning around. The branches of the trees shifted again, before the watcher dropped down and lowered into a squat to lessen the impact on her knees.

His heart began racing, hammering against his ribcage painfully. Minato's eyes narrowed and he could feel the panic slowly rising in him. How was he supposed to react? He rubbed his nose in a lame attempt to hide part of his reddening face.

"K.. Kushina-san... Ohayo..."

Kushina could feel her cheeks turning warm against the crisp morning air. She stared unblinkingly at him, taking in the sight of him as well as the sound of his voice. The kunoichi finally swallowed the lump in her throat and grinned nervously as she approached.

"Hey blondy... how long has it been, 'tebayo?"

Unbearably long.

It took a lot of control to keep Minato from hyperventilation. He inhaled and exhaled deeply, being sure to keep his breathing inaudible. _Just act natural... _He told himself. Minato smiled back lightly, shifting to sit down on the stump as she approached.

"I'd say about two weeks or so, Kushina-san..." Minato murmured. Kushina could feel her cheeks grow hotter at his smile. She quickly faked a sneeze, raising her hand to her mouth and nose to try and hide the smile that was beginning to creep up her own face.

"Bless you." Minato chuckled softly. _Don't start... not in front of her..._

"Thanks... and two weeks? Wow..." Kushina muttered under her breath, trying her best to act normal as well. She found it unusually hard not to stutter around him. She didn't think she'd be this flustered just by _being_ around him. Kushina turned her head to look over at the stream to avoid eye contact.

"Though it was kinda odd... I came up here a few times and didn't find you, datte'sa." Kushina commented without tearing her gaze from the stream. She found that hard as well. Minato stiffened lightly, drawing in a light gasp.

"Oh... I've just been busy... sensei's been going off on missions and.. well, yeah." Minato chuckled, closing his eyes for a moment as he forced himself to forget. Though it kept coming back and replaying in his mind. _So Kushina-san likes Fugaku..._

The very line struck his heart. Though he kept smiling, not wanting to worry Kushina or have to tell her the reason. _Just calm down..._

Kushina finally flickered her gaze back to him, but was flustered and returned her gaze to the stream. She blinked. Slowly, she turned her gaze back to the blond Chuunin.

What was wrong?

Minato seemed different... That aura.. the cheerful feeling that surrounded him was...

"-missing?" Kushina whispered out loud. Minato opened his eyes to blink down at the kunoichi. He turned red when he found that she was staring at him. Minato was about to lean back, but remembered that he was sitting on a stump a good three or four feet above the ground. Falling would hurt, even if just a little.

"What...?" Minato asked.

Kushina blushed when she realized that she had thought out loud. Though she sniffed a bit and rubbed her nose, frowning in embarrassment as she turned to look away once more.

"Uh... you.. seem kinda down, 'tebayo." Kushina grumbled pasted her gloved hand. At the same time, she was beginning to feel a bit down as well, wanting to comfort him in any way. Minato stiffened as well, and he could feel his blue eyes beginning to water. No! He quickly forced himself to control his emotions by smiling weakly.

"Uh.. yeah... kinda..."

"..." Kushina slowly rolled her gaze back to the blond, before she shifted to jump and sit on the tree stump besides him. Kushina silently wished that the tree stumps were closer together, but at the same time she didn't want Minato to see her red cheeks. "You know you can tell me.. I mean, you've listened to me before.."

Minato blinked in response, before his shoulders slowly dropped as he calmed unnaturally. He turned his gaze to look down at the grass before him, childishly swinging his legs back and forth slightly. "Well..." He murmured, searching for the right words. "It turns out the girl I like.. likes another guy."

"...!" Kushina could feel all the blood drain from her cheeks. She turned her head to look at him, her hands unconsciously clutching the edges of the tree stump she sat on. For several moments, she was struck speechless, the words caught at her throat. Kushina pursed her lips before she sighed.

"Sorry to hear that, 'tebayo..." She managed to mutter out. The kunoichi could feel her arms beginning to quiver. Tears were beginning to form, though she rubbed her eyes on her shoulder real fast. Minato didn't seem to notice, continuing to smile weakly.

"Yeah... I've been letting it get to me lately... and I'm not too proud of myself..."

Kushina inwardly winced. _Please... don't be sad... please..._ She pleaded silently. Her chest was beginning to feel tight. "Hey... try not to be, blondy... it might hurt for a while.. but that doesn't mean you should just stop living your life, right, 'tebayo?" Kushina was slightly surprised that her voice didn't crack while speaking.

Minato wanted to look at her, but he forced himself to stare at the ground. For several seconds his blue eyes were blank. His expression finally changed as he slowly smiled. Minato raised his head and turned to look at her, a couple of tears rolling down his cheeks.

"Arigatou.. Kushina-san.."

Kushina had turned her own head to look at him, flinching and eyes widening when she saw the tears. Though she started shivering at the two words, a few of her own tears beginning to fall. She put on a small facade and snorted, jumping down from the stump and wiping her eyes with the bottom of her palm.

"Look at us! Crying like some kids that lost their favorite toy..." Kushina grumbled. Minato's watery gaze followed her. "What kind of future Hokage cries, dattebayo?!"

Minato's eyes widened a bit, causing another small set of tears to fall unconsciously. "...!"

"Don't tell me you've forgotten!!" Kushina forced a smirk as she crossed her arms. "Remember? You said that you would become the Yondaime Hokage..."

Minato continued to stare at her for several moments. The smile slowly returned. His eyes still held sadness, though there was a small light that shone.

"Right... Just don't let yourself get weak now."

Kushina snorted before she shivered again. _Just a bit longer..._ "Well, don't let yourself be down all the time." She muttered before spinning around. Minato's eyes widened at this, but he made no move.

"I should.. probably head back to town.. I still have to find a job, since Daylian-nii-san's just been doing all the work.." Kushina murmured. She lowered her head, shoulders tensing slightly as she fought to keep her emotions in check. Minato looked disappointed, though he continued to smile weakly as his shoulders dropped. It was for the best if she went. He was about to break down any moment.

And so was she.

"I'll be seeing you around, then... Kushina-san.."

"... Just Kushina is fine..." The red-haired kunoichi muttered in response. She didn't bother to look over her shoulder as she ran forward, disappearing in a shunshin seconds after.

"... Arigatou..." Minato whispered. He propped his arms back behind him and leaned back slightly, resting his head back so that he could look upwards. Blue met blue, before Minato closed his eyes and allowed the tears to flow.

* * *

"All around the country, Hokage-sama?" Daylian questioned as he leaned over the table, violet eyes flickering over the map to memorize the geographical details. Sarutobi nodded as he leaned back against his chair, eyes staring at the black-haired nin. Daylian's gaze flickered to up the Sandaime Hokage, before looking down at the map once more.

"May I...?"

"By all means."

Daylian murmured a thanks and took the edges of the map to fold it up. After doing so, he took the scroll that was being held out to him by Sarutobi.

"That holds more further details..." Sarutobi said. Daylian dipped his head in a nod as he pocketed the scroll. His violet gaze slid down to the folded map in his hand, before shifting to look at Sarutobi.

"How long should we...?"

"..." Sarutobi frowned slightly as he shook his head. "I'm not sure... Though it may take a while... there are several villages within the Hi no Kuni..."

"True..." Daylian muttered under his breath. He opened his mouth to speak, though Sarutobi beat him to it.

"Of course Kushina-san is to go with you." Sarutobi murmured. He folded his hands and propped his elbows up onto his desk, hiding his mouth. "You are, after all, her legal guardian now..."

".. Right..." Daylian muttered once more. He shook his head. "Is there anything else I should know?"

"..." Sarutobi fell silent. "I'm sure Kushina-san knows how to take care of the fellow here..." His gaze flickered to the corner of his eye, glimpsing at a black bird, almost crow-like, that was perched at the edge of the desk. Beady black eyes stared back at the Sandaime Hokage, before Kurotsume tilted his head to the side questioningly. The courier bird's head shot over to Daylian for a moment, before quickly snapping back to Sarutobi. Daylian nodded in response to Sarutobi, holding out his arm in an offer for the bird.

Kurotsume stared at the limb for several seconds, before he finally stretched his wings and jumped on, flapping his wings a few times until he regained his balance.

"Alright... first thing tomorrow." Daylian murmured. Sarutobi nodded his head.

"I wish you both well..."

"Right." Daylian turned to leave the room, the folded map in one hand and Kurotsume resting on the other. He looked over at the courier bird, before shrugging and offering his shoulder to the bird. Kurotsume looked wary at first, but eventually took the offer and left the room perched on Daylian's shoulder.

"God forbids that she's wandering lost right now..." Daylian sighed to himself and shook his head. He exited the tower and trailed lazily down the stairs, getting a good view of the village as he did. He stifled a shrug, and got an annoyed squawk from Kurotsume.

Daylian ignored this and continued on into the street. He kept his violet gaze locked on the streets before him, ignoring everyone else that passed. He refrained from sighing once more. The black-haired ninja continued to walk down the street, already having memorized most of the streets in the village. His job _did_ involve him hauling crap around Konoha, so getting lost would be a bad thing. Within a few minutes he was on the same street that lead straight to the apartment, and Daylian picked up the pace slightly.

"You might want to hold on..." He muttered to Kurotsume as he skipped a few steps going up the stairs. Daylian flinched and grumbled when Kurotsume slapped his head a few times.

"Ow, ow... I'm sorry..." Daylian grumbled, approaching the door. The black bird folded his wings back against his flank, turning his head slightly to look away. Daylian sneered at this, before he placed his hand on the knob.

"And I'm gonna have to deal with you?" He turned the knob and blinked when the door opened. Daylian entered the small apartment then looked around.

"'Shina? Are you here...?" Daylian called after closing the door shut behind him. He paused and waited for some kind of response. Nothing, though he heard the brushing sound of clothes. So he trailed in and glimpsed around.

"'Shina?" He called once more. Daylian trailed around the place a few times, then eventually went into the bathroom and peered in. He sighed and growled to make Kurotsume get off his shoulder, and the courier bird instantly flew over to the bed frame, latching his claws onto the wooden board. Daylian ignored the bird and then strode to a door in the corner of the room, yanking it open.

Surely enough, the kunoichi was laying in the large storage room with her back to the door. She was on her side, practically lying in the corner of the room. Daylian raised a brow and walked in to approach her.

"Go away..." Kushina muttered without moving. Daylian halted in the middle of the storage room and folded his arms across his chest.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"I know something's wrong, 'Shina... otherwise you wouldn't be on the floor in the corner."

"Just go away, nii-san..."

"..." Daylian shook his head with a sigh. He shifted to sit down besides her, but faced the opened doorway instead. Lazily, he slouched and rested his arms atop his knees. The two sat in silence for several minutes, Kushina's sniffles being the only sound audible. That an Kurotsume's occasional scratching of investigating the main room. Daylian was starting to nod off, though he felt something against his back and carefully turned his head to look over his shoulder. Kushina had sat up, though she was heavily leaning against his back to prop herself upright slightly. Her fist curled around the back of his jacket.

Violet eyes softened before he turned his head back to the front.

"... Does it involve Uzu?"

"... No..."

Daylian paused and then guessed again. "The guy you like?"

"Yeah..."

He sighed and shook his head. "Sorry..."

"It's not your fault, 'tebayo..." Kushina mumbled into his back. Daylian sighed, though it dragged on longer than the last. Kushina shifted once more, slowly sliding back down onto the floor. Daylian looked over his shoulder, then turned around to pull her off the ground and onto his lap.

"Geezus you got heavy..." Daylian grunted. He glimpsed down to see her reaction, and frowned when she didn't even so much as growl up at him. He sighed and adjusted her so that she was in his lap and leaning against him. Daylian shook his head and placed one hand on her head.

"Look, I know it hurts, considering that he's the first guy you ever liked." He muttered. Kushina just continued to stare blankly at her own lap. So Daylian continued. "But you can't just let him become your world... you have an entire life ahead of you, and frankly moping around like some grounded kid isn't going to get you anywhere."

"..." _That's pretty much what I said to blondy..._

"I swear to god, you better be listening at least." Daylian growled. Though his violet eyes softened as he looked down at her. "As corny as I'm about to sound, there _are_ other guys out there... so long as you don't start liking an Uchiha or assholes along their line, then I'm quite fine."

Daylian released another long sigh. "_O_kayyyy... so we got assigned a mission today."

Kushina shifted a bit but didn't bother to look up. She just groaned softly in a type of response for him to continue.

"We have to travel around the country and visit just about every village..." Daylian grumbled. "See what's going on and if we hear anything... there might be a war coming up, and Hokage-sama's wondering how the villages outside Konoha are dealing with it.. or if they're possibly sheltering any enemies or spies." He sighed once more. "So we'll be out of Konoha for a while... you alright with that?"

"..." Kushina shifted once more in Daylian's lap, finally raising her head but continuing to stare at the ground. Daylian removed his hand from her head, and she staggered to get up to her feet.

"Yeah... I... want to get away from the village for a while, dattebayo..."

* * *

"Map, spare food, clothes, scroll, bird, girl, water bottles, chopsticks..." Daylian went through a slightly fake list in his mind as they walked down the streets, a lame attempt to try and humor Kushina. He turned his head to look down at the kunoichi, though he got no reaction from her. She just shifted the small waist pouch and checked the contents to make sure she had everything. The corner of Daylian's mouth twitched, before he sighed and continued on. Kurotsume shifted from the older Uzu nin's shoulder.

"So the land lady's gonna take care of your plants, right?"

"Uh-huh..." Kushina mumbled in response. Daylian turned to look down at her then shook his head and continued on through the streets, leaving their home behind them. Kushina continued to walk on, slightly in a daze as she loped a step behind her brother-by-law. Her eyes were blank, and she exhaled a heavy sigh. So Minato liked a girl whom didn't like him... that was pretty much her situation, too. The corner of her mouth twitched and she quickly raised her hand rub her eye. Kushina used the same hand to run her fingers through her red hair, pulling out some small knots as she did. She finally shifted to look up, noticing a familiar white-haired man coming down the street.

"Nn?" Jiraiya rose a brow when he caught sight of the redhead. He slowed to a halt, and Daylian did as well, looking just as confused as Tsunade, whom halted besides Jiraiya.

"Well, if it isn't Kushina..." The Gama Sennin murmured. "Goin' on a mission?"

"..." Kushina stared at Jiraiya for several moments, before searching around him, half hoping to see Minato with him. The blond Chuunin wasn't to be seen. She sighed and the nodded. "Yeah..."

Daylian's gaze flickered between Kushina and Jiraiya, then over to Tsunade. "Oh... the blond chick."

Tsunade frowned slightly at the comment. "Yeah, and you're the kid that came by a while back..."

"I'm flattered- you remember me." Daylian snorted lightly and folded his arms. Kushina rubbed the back of her neck, turning to look up at her brother.

"Go on a bit... I wanna talk to the pervert real fast, datte'sa."

Jiraiya deadpanned at this comment, while Tsunade and Daylian stifled some snickers. Nevertheless, Daylian nodded and moved forward to walk past two of the Sannin. "Alright, don't get lost, now." Kurotsume squawked, as if agreeing with him.

"Just what gives you the right to call me-"

"Can you tell blondy that I'll be gone for a while?" Kushina interrupted, clearly ignoring what Jiraiya was about to demand. The white-haired Sannin blinked at this, before slowly nodding.

"Uh... alright... if you say so."

"Yeah... and tell him I said 'You're welcome'..." Kushina muttered before quickly moving past Jiraiya, running to catch up with Daylian. Jiraiya blinked once more and turned to watch her run off down the street, soon rejoining her brother. Tsunade rose a brow.

"So that's who chibi likes?" The blond medic nin questioned. Jiraiya slowly nodded and continued to watch as the kunoichi disappeared down the street. He shook his head this time and turned to continue down the opposite street.

"And what was that all about?" Tsunade questioned again as she followed her teammate. Jiraiya stifled a shrug.

"I'm not sure myself... but she said that she would be gone for a while... but her time away might be good for 'Nato..."

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **So. I got the flu. _The day after the previous update_. It sucked big time for me. You won't believe how sad I was. I didn't get a chance to check my emails until the following day. And thank you guys _so much_ for the reviews. I was still sick when I read the reviews, but they made me feel so much better. Love ya guys. x3

And yes, I have a misery fetish. o-o I love to torture characters. Don't ask me why, but it's just so... fun? xD'  
Dx And argh to you guys. Mind readers... I got the reviews that asked about the Konoha-Iwa war so I was "all damn. Dx They're gonna see it coming."  
... :c Again with the writers block on some parts... -sighsigh- I try..

Okay, okay. I'll admit, even I was close to crying while typing this chapter. ;-; I just love these two so much...!  
And the usual thank you for the reviews, too! ;-; This fic wouldn't be possible without your guys' support!


	14. The Older I Get

**Chapter XIV: The Older I Get**

_Things were dark._

_That's how it always was in Iwagakure. The sun barely shone, often hidden by dark clouds or the large mountains that casted shadows around the village. The people were pale. _

_The people were also asking for a fight._

_That's why he was here. _

_Hatake Sakumo instantly halted the flow of his chakra as he landed with silenced footsteps on the slab of rock. He could feel his teammates regroup behind him, and he casted a glare over his shoulder when the shuffles of their feet were audible. One of them dipped his head once and kept it lowered in an apology. Sakumo scowled darkly in response and then returned his gaze to the front._

_Iwagakure was, basically, a large, rocky valley with the village nestled between the mountains. The very village they were to infiltrate was lying in wait below them. There were some small spikes of chakra below, indicating the ninja guards that were circling around, wary of invaders._

_Sakumo couldn't stop himself from shaking his head lightly. Why were they the ones wary? They were the ones picking the fight._

_He raised his right hand up to his shoulder, fingers pressed together before he tilted his hand sideways. Using as little chakra as possible, the platoon disappeared. _

_Sakumo had to admit that it was rather difficult traveling in this type of terrain. There were several loose rocks and any small step on them would send them tumbling down towards the village, instantly alerting the ninja. So they also traveled slowly, being sure to keep themselves hidden among the shadows that the setting sun was casting. Night was approaching. They had to act fast._

_The mission itself was rather dangerous. They narrowly managed to get past some Iwa nin in the country, having to kill a couple and disposing the bodies in order to keep their presence unknown. _

_They made their way slowly towards the village, also examining it to memorize rooftops, streets, as well as where the sentries weren't looking. Sakumo's charcoal black gaze eventually fell upon a larger building that was nestled right where the two mountains met at the edge of the valley._

_Their target was there._

_In that building was the man pulling the strings, controlling the Iwa nin. _

_That was why they were here._

_The Konoha platoon soon gathered atop a rooftop in the further outskirts of the hidden village, crouching as they landed and keeping their senses sharpened, their chakra dulled to a barely noticeable level. Sakumo crouched in front of the other three, his eyes flickering back and forth while he searched for the nearest source of chakra. 50 yards north... 67 yards east. West was cleared for now. Sakumo raised his right hand once more in silence motions or them to move. The platoon nodded their heads in unison and disappeared in multiple blurs. Quickly, they avoided being seen or sensed by the sentries, being sure to trigger no hidden traps or make any noise. _

_They were in enemy territory now. One small trip, one small mistake, and they were dead. _

_Sakumo landed on the walls of the large building, keeping low and turning his head as the rest of his teammates appeared along the wall besides him, using as little chakra as possible to cling to the building. Sakumo dipped his head into a single nod and disappeared once more. The platoon leader couldn't help but roll his eyes. The windows weren't even being guarded. Sakumo easily pulled the glass out of place and slipped into the building, replacing it without making a sound. _

_He turned around and was soon joined by his teammates once more. Sakumo raised his hand and motioned down the darkening halls. They nodded. The Konoha platoon moved forward, crouching as they snuck around the building. Sakumo paused for a moment then continued onwards. _

_Sakumo came to the end of the hall, his teammates soon catching up. The silver-haired ninja raised his hand and carefully placed his index and middle finger on the surface of the door. _

_Then it exploded._

_Wood splintered everywhere, and more stalagmites shot up from the ground to stab right through the Konoha nin and protrude the roof. Sakumo had reacted quickly, using the first stalagmite as leverage to dart back in swift Shunshins. His teammates followed, though one of them had reacted a moment late and cut himself on the sharp edge of the Doton move. The stalagmites remained still before slowly sinking back into the broken floor, which creaked as the user of the jutsu stepped through the broken door frame, jumping over the large hole in the floor. _

_"Shit..." Sakumo hissed under his breath, his feet already parted as he stared at the man before them. _

_The Tsuchikage._

_The very man whom ran the village. The one whom was nominated the best among his ninja. _

_Sakumo shifted and slowly, cautiously raised his hand, reaching for the handle of the weapon strapped to his back. The Kage instantly saw this and his hands were clasped together a moment later, already having performed a set of hand seals. The ground began rumbling again, and the Konoha platoon made their move. _

_Stalagmites returned though this time stalactites accompanied from above. The Doton move closed in on them like a beast closing its jaw._

_Sakumo drew his weapon._

_The edges of the rocks were cleanly cut off and fell uselessly to the ground. One of the platoon members had his hand in the dragon seal, inhaling deeply to give Sakumo a chance to move out of the way. His chest puffed up and he lurched forward, spitting out the large fire and illuminating the battle terrain, bathing it in orange and yellow light. The Tsuchikage only clapped his hands together in another seal. Two slabs of rocks shot up and down from the ceiling and floor, closing like a door to protect the Kage from harm. The very Konoha nin that had used the Katon instantly jumped back, though the stalagmite gashed his chest, leaving a bloody open wound through his vest. _

_Sakumo scowled as he darted forward with immense speed. There are already other Iwa Jounin approaching. He had to act quickly. _

_Shifting his grip on the small blade, Sakumo narrowed his eyes and lashed out at the earth wall. White chakra immediately surrounded the blade and then, like a whip, flung and slit at the earth wall. The barrier crumbled, and Sakumo was instantly greeted with another Doton attack. _

_He underestimated the amount of chakra put into the jutsu that time. His chakra blade only nicked the edge before gouging itself into his left shoulder. Sakumo hissed and jumped back to disappear in a shunshin._

_"Report...!" He hissed, black eyes staring past the flames that were licking the walls._

_Konoha's Shiroi Kiba tensed when he got no reply. He slowly turned his head and saw that the rest of his platoon had his back to him, facing the line of Iwa Jounin._

_Sakumo swore under his breath and snapped his gaze back to the Tsuchikage, whom was before him with another set of hand seals already finished. _

_"Doton!: Iwa Yado Kuzushi!" _

_Sakumo looked around as the walls shifted. They soon collapsed in on each other, slowly creating a barrier around him and his platoon. Though the flames were not being extinguished. They would be surrounded by earth and fire, burned or crushed to death._

_Sakumo scowled darkly and looked at the rest of his platoon. Each of them were wounded in some way, one of them lowered onto one knee and holding his bloodied temple. Sakumo shifted and closed his eyes, gently turning his blade in his hand as he concentrated. The temperature was slowly rising in the enclosed space._

_"Hatake-taichou..." One of his teammates hissed. Sakumo didn't reply. His grip tightened around his weapon before Sakumo spun around in a complete circle, the white chakra practically blinding as he slashed around at the entire barrier that was forming around them. In a way, he had to thank the Hyuugas. The silver-haired Jounin didn't stop at the barrier, darting forward and whipping at the Iwa Jounin that stood in their path. The other three looked dumbfounded, but quickly scrambled to their feet to go after their captain. _

_The Iwa Jounin each clasped their hands into seals, shoulders squaring as they prepared for a large, combined jutsu. Sakumo swore and spun around once more to lash out at the Iwa nin. A few of them fell back with snarls, though one or two of them managed to finish the jutsu. The building began to shake, and Sakumo snarled. _

_"Let's go!!" He snarled, stabbing one of the Iwa nin right through the chest. The ceiling was beginning to collapse in, several rock parts falling. Sakumo looked back at his teammates and swore loudly once more. He returned his blade to the sheath on his back, quickly darting to his teammate's side and pulling the Konoha nin's arm over his shoulder. _

_"The rest of you, follow me!!" Sakumo snarled over his shoulder before darting forward. He skillfully managed to dodge the larger rubble pieces, the dirt and dust showering him and the wounded teammate besides him. Sakumo disappeared forward in a shunshin, barely managing to make it past a collapsed wall and out of the building. He looked over his shoulder and eyes narrowed, seeing that one of his members was missing. He swore but continued on through the village, forcing more and more chakra into his feet to pick up speed._

_"Batsura didn't make it..." Sakumo hissed. The remaining member behind Sakumo only continued to follow in grim silence._

* * *

_"Push them back!! We can't have them get past the country borders like last time!" _

_Fire erupted from the shadows of the forest, burning everything in its path to try and frighten the enemy back over the border lines. The large fireball was soon smothered and put out, the large wall of earth dropping back to the ground and sending dust into the air. The Konoha nin coughed as they inhaled a bit, squinting to keep the dirt out of their eyes. Multiple chakra spikes appeared and the Jounin were instantly on guard, drawing kunai and shuriken and turning to throw them. Wires snapped and hundred more weapons rained down upon the terrain. A few of the slow-reactive Iwa ninja yelled and shielded their heads, writhing as the blades pierced their clothing and flesh. _

_The Konoha Jounin looked up as the shower of weapons finally came to a slowing halt, quickly running over to investigate some earth domes that had been conjured to protect the Iwa nin. One of them cautiously threw a kunai and jumped when the wall instantly crumbled. No attack came, and the same Jounin ran forward to check it out. He tensed when the whole dome collapsed into a heap of dust and rubble, clearing with his foot and swearing loudly. He spun around to look back at the rest of them._

_"They've burrowed beneath ground!!" _

_They all swore in unison, and the leader of the platoon spun around to dart deeper into the Hi no Kuni. _

_A few several kilometers ahead of where the platoon was heading for, the earth shook slightly. A crack appeared along the ground, before the ground opened up and the first Iwa nin surface, shaking his head to rid his hair of the dirt. He turned to examine the area then lifted himself out of the hole. The Iwa nin turned and instantly raised his arm to defend himself._

_The beast latched its fangs violently onto the man's arm, using all the strength in its jaw to bite down through the clothing and deep into the flesh. The Iwa growled and instinctively used his free hand to bash his fist into the wolf's head. _

_"What's going on up there?!" _

_The first Iwa nin snarled and climbed out of the ground with his fist still smashing away at the animal's skull. It remained latched onto his arm, lips curled up to show the length of his fangs. The wolf gave a sharp tug and then released the man, hurtling itself to tackle him down. More Iwa Jounin surfaced from the ground and immediately saw their comrade being forced to the ground by a wolf, its jaws snapping furiously at the man's face while barking loudly. The Iwa nin scowled and swore as he struggled to keep the fangs away from his face. _

_Another Iwa Jounin took offensive action and stabbed the wolf through the shoulder. It yelped and whimpered, staggering off the Iwa nin before it snapped its head back into their direction. _

_A smirk?_

_Then it disappeared in a small cloud as well as a poof!_

_Smack!_

_Another Iwa nin was instantly tackled down, this time three more enemies pinning it down and drawing a kunai. The Iwa nin was clearly shocked at the sudden arrival but regain their composure. Another Iwa went down as the wolf dropped in from the tree tops, fangs tearing at the throat before jumping to move to the next enemy. _

_"You damn Konoha nin's move pretty fast, dont'cha?!" One of the Iwa Jounins snarled as he flickered his hands in a set of seals. The earth below them instantly shifted and rumbled, growing to life to form a monster that towered at least twenty feet above them. The wolf looked up from where he was standing a pinned Iwa, eyes flashing. The Iwa Jounin smirked despite the situation and tightened his current hand seal, causing the earth monster to shift to life to move forward. _

_The same smirk returned. _

_A squawk screeched through the air, and at the instant a ravenous bird swooped in from the shadows of the trees, pecking and clawing at the Jounin. The Iwa stifled a startled yell, jerking his body to try and scare off the bird. The animal remained persistent, continuing to flap its light wings rapidly and clawing at the man's face. The bird gave a final squawk and beat its wings harder, taking higher flight. The Jounin spat out some feathers that managed to get into his mouth, and instantly he doubled over. Another kick was landed to the back of his head and the Iwa fell over. Though the attacker and the Bunshins kept mauling at him, kicking, punching and stabbing the man until he lie still. The earth monster, now uncontrolled, stiffened and then crumbled to the ground, turning into a large pile of dirt and rocks. _

_"Shit!!" The remaining Iwa nin snarled as they shifted to strike at the attackers. A couple of them froze and turned to look over their shoulders. The Konoha platoon was catching up!! _

_They sensed one of the two attackers moving and turned to look back. One of them was instantly punched in the face, before the ninja spun and kicked the Iwa Jounin in the throat. Sputtering, the Jounin gasped for air and stumbled backwards. _

_The dark forest was illuminated with orange and yellow light suddenly, and the Iwa managed to get a glimpse of their attackers._

_A kunoichi and a black wolf. _

_Then the flames consumed them, sending them screaming in agony. One of them managed to roll out of the flames and staggered to get up. He darted off into the dark forest, and was instantly pursued by two Konoha nin to finish him off. The fire continued to burn at the Iwa platoon before the user slowly released the control, allowing it to die out. _

_The two attackers rejoined each other, though a man stood in place of the wolf. The raven-like bird swooped down from the trees once more and landed on his shoulder, shifting about as it stared at the Konoha platoon. _

_Three pairs of eyes continued to stare at the group, before the man shook his head and turned around. The smaller kunoichi's red-brown gaze lingered for a while longer, then she finally turned to follow the taller one. _

_"W.. wait." One of the Konoha ninja muttered, taking cautious steps forward. "Who sent you?"_

_"..." The kunoichi paused a couple of steps behind her companion, turning to look over her shoulder. "... We're on Konoha's side, dattebayo."_

_

* * *

_

"Wow... the place is kinda totaled..."

Was the first words spoken when the three passed through the gates. Their eyes instantly fell upon the collapsed buildings off to the western part of the village, where the debris was slowly being cleaned by villagers and ninja alike. The work was rather slow, since there was so much places where the buildings had once stood.

Violet eyes lingered upon the mess, before he tore his gaze away as he shook his head. Daylian shifted to move past the large village gates, Kurotsume opening his wings to regain his balance.

Kushina stared at the collapsed buildings for a while longer, her face expressionless. Shifting the small bag on her shoulder, she frowned slightly and moved forward to follow her brother.

Their travels certainly weren't in vain. They had run into quite a lot of Iwa shinobi along the way, some cases in which they had to defend the smaller villages from being invaded or taken over as a secret base. They had gotten rewarded numerous times, though most of the towns were rather poor- with the war already taking form, the country's government was starting to take money in from the towns, practically sucking them dry.

One of those towns was where Daylian got his "long-ass coat", as Kushina described it.

Kushina was also offered several things as rewards, a simple yukata being one of them. The kunoichi had tried to refuse, but the elderly woman insisted on it, so now it lay folded in the bag on her back- which was also one of the many items they received. She grumbled at the thought. When would she be able to wear a yukata? With a war going on, it didn't seem very likely, anyway. On top of that, she didn't even know how to put it on.

"... Hey!"

"Nn?" Kushina snapped out of her thoughts and nearly bumped into Daylian. The black-haired ninja sighed in response to her dozing.

"We gotta go report to Hokage-sama now." Daylian murmured. The corner of Kushina's mouth twitched before she nodded, bending her knees to follow in a Shunshin after him. Kurotsume clearly disliked the sudden speed and decided to take flight after them.

Kushina glimpsed around as they darted through the village. The streets were generally empty aside from the vendors and workers whom trailed around. A few shops were closed with the windows looking half-broken. The kunoichi frowned and turned her head back to the front.

The cheerful feeling.

Gone.

The two landed at the bottom of the stair cases that lead up to the entrance of the Tower. Kurotsume swooped down from the sky to land on the railing at the top. Daylian growled and skipped a few steps as he climbed the stairs, while Kushina walked up slowly, examining the village that was opening up before her. She frowned once more, then turned her head and entered the building after her brother.

"Come on..." Daylian grumbled over his shoulder. His violet gaze flickered up to Kurotsume, whom took his usual perch on the black-haired nin's shoulders. Kushina nodded and quickened her pace to catch up with him. They halted before a door, and Daylian exhaled a deep sigh then entered.

"Hokage-sama-" Violet eyes looked into the room, and instead of staring at the Sandaime Hokage, stared at the backs of masked Anbu. A couple of them glimpsed over their shoulders, eyes drowned out by the dark eye holes of the masks. Sarutobi paused his talking to glimpse past the four Anbu before him. He regarded the former Uzu nins and returned his gaze back up towards one of the Black Ops members.

"... And report to me as soon as anything happens."

"Very well, Sandaime Hokage-sama." An Anbu with a dog mask lowered into a bow before he disappeared. The other Anbu soon forgot about Daylian and Kushina, shifting to follow their captain. Sarutobi dipped his head to nod.

"Welcome back... Daylian-san, Kushina-san.." He greeted. Kushina's eyes narrowed for a moment but then she nodded as well. ... I guess he has every right to be serious... It is a war, after all...

"Yeah... It's not going so well around most parts of the country, Hokage-sama." Daylian muttered as he entered the room, holding it open for Kushina and then quietly closing it. Sarutobi's frown deepened slightly, then he stifled a sigh.

"That is expected... Did you run into a few ambush platoons?"

"Tons of times..." Daylian muttered. "Though we had surprise on our side... They didn't expect us to be around..."

Sarutobi nodded once more. "I see... There were some rumors of a kunoichi, a bird, and a wolf going around.. So I assumed it was you three..."

"Aah..." Daylian muttered with a sigh following shortly after. Kushina remained silent, her gaze sliding back and forth between the two. When the room fell into silence, she spoke.

"What should we do now, Hokage-sama, 'tebayo?"

"Rest... I'm sure you need it." Sarutobi raised his arm to beckon the bird. Kurotsume hesitated a bit, but then recognized the Sandaime and opened his wings to glide across the office, landing gracefully onto Sarutobi's forearm. "Rest as much as you can... we don't know when the next invasion could happen..."

"So they managed to slip past the borders and attack the village directly, I assume?" Daylian guessed. Sarutobi sighed once more and nodded.

"Yeah... That's most likely why you ran into the Konoha platoon just recently..."

"So you've heard?"

"But of course..."

Daylian dipped his head slightly and then craned his neck. "Well, rest is what I really want right now... On top of that I'm starving my ass off, my legs are killing me, and I need a shower."

Kushina snorted in response. "You're not the only one, nii-san..." She growled under her breath. Sarutobi nodded.

"Go home... rejuvenate yourselves... We need all the strength of the village right now." Sarutobi muttered gravely. Daylian frowned slightly and nodded. He was about to leave the room, but spun around in a full circle and approached the desk instead, two scrolls already drawn from his own bag.

"Some messages from a few of the smithing villages... If I recall, one of them is asking permission to enter the village for protection... and in return, they can make some more weapons for us."

"Ah..." Sarutobi nodded and gratefully took the scrolls. "Thank you... we could use such support."

"..." Daylian mimicked his nod then turned to look at Kushina. "Let's get back to the apartment... Hopefully we know where it is..." He muttered as he approached and door, pulling it open. Kushina bowed to Sarutobi and then waved to Kurotsume, whom squawked his farewells. The red-haired kunoichi pulled the door shut behind her and trailed down the hall, dozing for several minutes. Once she snapped back to reality, she found herself unconsciously following Daylian down the streets.

"... Hey... I.. want to go to stop by at one place real fast..." Kushina muttered. Daylian rose a brow when he finally heard something come out of her mouth. He turned to look at her, a brow still risen.

"Just real fast... I still know where the apartment is, datte'ba..." Kushina grumbled as she made sure to avoid eye contact. Daylian sighed and nodded, quickening his pace. "Gimme the key."

"Yup." Kushina replied simply, already pulling out the key and tossing it to him. Without bothering to look, Daylian raised his hand and caught it, continuing to stride down the streets. Kushina halted at one corner and watched him go, before turning to head down the other street.

Namikaze Minato.

How long has it been? She wondered if was back to his usual self. Did he still like the other girl...? The corner of Kushina's mouth twitched.

She was feeling lucky. Confident.

For the first time since she arrived in Konoha, Kushina grinned lightly.

* * *

"G-Gamabunta-san!! Have mercy! I'm still only fifteen!!"

"Che! Don't just summon me for no reason, gaki!!" The large toad snarled as he landed noisily back on the ground, rolling his eyes back as far as they could to try and look at his back. "Call me into a real battle, not to train a snot-nosed kid like yourself!" Gamabunta shifted the pipe in his mouth and then brawled back, taking another giant leap into the air.

Minato nearly passed out when the toad landed on the ground again, creating an unnatural quake. He clung to the back of Gamabunta's half-robe, gripping onto the clothing so hard that his knuckles were completely white from lack of blood circulation. Minato hit the toad's back rather roughly when Gamabunta landed, causing the blond to cough and try to regain the breath that was lost.

"How long do you plan on staying on my back, ehhh?!" Gamabunta snarled once more. Minato drew in another sharp gasp as the toad leaped into the air again. If it was possible, his grip tightened on the back of the chief toad's robe. When they landed, Minato did some kind of face plant into Gamabunta's back, nearly knocking him out.

"Okay, Gamabunta-san..." Minato mumbled, hoping the large toad would hear. "Just don't jump again... please." He added meekly.

"Che..." Gamabunta snorted and held still, impatiently waiting for the blond to get off. Minato slowly got to his feet, nearly stumbling backwards as all the blood rushed down from his head. His vision grew dark for a moment, but it quickly faded as Minato unconsciously clung to the toad's back using via chakra. The blond shook his head and then sighed as he rubbed his head.

"Gomenasai, Gamabunta-san." Minato murmured. Gamabunta snorted in response. A moment later, he no longer felt the fifteen-year-old on his back. He turned to look around at the forest-covered training grounds, soon spotting the blond. "... You've gotten faster, gaki." The toad commented before he disappeared in a large cloud of smoke.

"Phew..." Minato sighed lightly, though he grinned at Gamabunta's acknowledgment.

"... What was that all about, dattebayo?"

Minato could feel himself stiffen slightly. Blue eyes widened in disbelief. Fingers twitching, Minato forced himself to believe the voice was real and turned his head to look over his shoulder. Kushina was casually crouching on the only tree stumble that wasn't broken. A brow was raised, but she was grinning.

"K... Kushina-san!!"

The kunoichi soon noticed that Minato's voice had gotten a bit deeper since they last met. She felt her cheeks color and then hopped down from the stump to approach him. Though she took her time, examining him from head to toe. He was now wearing one of Konoha's vests as well as the navy underclothing, though the sleeves were rather big for him so they were rolled up to his forearms. The hilt of his weighted sword was visible over his right shoulder, the rope going across his green vest. His bangs had grown a bit longer as well, nearly covering the entire metal plate of his hitai-ate with the Konoha symbol just barely visible.

While Kushina was examining him, so was he. Minato forced himself to breath, trying to relax so that his blood wouldn't rush up to his cheeks again.

Her hair was longer. That was the first thing he noticed. It probably went down to about her shoulder blades, Minato guessed. Her outfit definitely changed. Being a white half-robe with black rimming, and some cloth around her waist to keep it closed. Some fishnets were visible around her collarbone, the fishnets just barely visible under the robe sleeves as well. She wore some rather dusty pants that were rolled up to the bottom of her shins. Her hitai-ate wasn't to be seen, currently. Minato sniffed a bit. He couldn't help but noticed a couple of... physical changes about Kushina. He blushed slightly and forced himself to look up at her face.

"Wow... How long has it been?" Minato managed to say without stuttering. Kushina halted a couple of steps before him, then blinked and frowned slightly. She raised her hand up to the top of her head, then measured her height compared to him.

"You've gotten a little taller..." She muttered, pouting slightly. The top of her head was about to Minato's eye level now. Minato couldn't stop himself from smiling at the pouting expression, before it soon formed into a grin when he noticed the height difference as well.

"Haha! I remember that we were practically the same height...!"

Kushina rubbed her nose when the blond laughed. She's missed hearing that warm sound...

"Yeah, well... You had practically a whole year to grow taller... It would've been pathetic if you didn't grow at all, dattebayo!!" Kushina snorted and folded her arms. Minato smiled.

"A year...? Wow..." I've missed you... Minato kept the three words to himself. Though the reality was that Kushina was thinking the exact same sentence. Silence fell between the two, quietly enjoying each other's presence. Kushina's cheeks colored once more when the silence started to grow more and more awkward. So she dared to ask a question that had been nagging at her for the past several months.

"So... Did you find yourself a girlfriend?" She questioned, soon growing flustered when she realized that she actually asked. Minato's eyes widened for a moment and his cheeks reddened further. Though the blond smiled meekly.

"N.. No. I've been asked a few times, but... I turned them down." Minato replied, inwardly cursing at the stutter. Kushina's heart rate increased slightly at the thought of him turning down the girls. Though on the outside she tried to make it not seem like it.

"Why'd ya turn them down, 'tebayo?" Kushina questioned. It took quite a lot for her to quirk one of her brows. Minato blinked and then grinned sheepishly.

"Well... I suppose they weren't.. interesting." Minato picked his words carefully. It was true, in a way... His fixation was on Kushina when he was asked those times... Still is.

Kushina blinked a bit, but she couldn't stop herself from grinning lightly and chuckling. She couldn't begin to express how happy she felt at the thought of Minato still being single. The blond blinked in response. But he smiled warmly as she continued to grin and chuckle. The very sight made him forget about when he was in his state of depression nearly a year ago... It even made him forget about the war, if for a little bit.

Reality came back with the screech of a bird.

Minato's gaze instantly snapped upwards, soon spotting the large bird that was creating the near-earsplitting sound. Kushina even raised her hands to cover her ears, frowning suddenly as she glared up at the bird. Minato could feel all the blood in his cheeks drain.

"Now, of all times?!" He growled. His expression grew serious as he looked down at Kushina. She returned his gaze with confusion visible in her eyes. "There's a whole bunch of Iwa ninja moving across the border...!" Minato explained quickly. The blond returned his gaze back upwards when the bird continued screeching loudly. Minato swore and spun around.

"I gotta get out there..." He muttered, shifting to move forward in a Shunshin. Kushina blinked dumbfoundly when he disappeared suddenly, but growled and disappeared after him.

"Wait! Are you sure we're allowed to just go out there and fight, datte'sa?!" Kushina growled once she caught sight of the blond moving through the trees. Minato's eyes widened when he heard the kunoichi behind him, and slowed his pace slightly to allow her to catch up.

"Of course... it's a war, Kushina-san..." Minato murmured under his breath. The corner of Kushina's mouth twitched, but she returned her gaze to the front and sighed.

"Alright... though I'm not sure if two Chuunin are going to make a difference..." She muttered.

Despite the sudden urgent situation, Minato was grinning with a light smug hidden in it. He turned to look over at Kushina, still grinning. Kushina raised a brow in response, before she suddenly grew wary when she noticed how smug he was looking. Minato continued to grin and then soon started chuckling.

"Oh... I think I forgot to mention that I've been a Jounin for about half a year."

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **Whoops, the beginning with Sakumo turned out a lot longer than I expected. D: Sorry about that. I know it's Minato and Kushina's story, but I didn't really intend on making Sakumo's 'debut' that long.

Thank you guys for your patience. D: It shall be rewarded. Soon enough. Heeheehee...  
Argh... Writer's block, damn you. Damn you, I say!! D: Because of you the chapter's...! Argh. Not very satisfactory through my eyes. x.x' . . .

Oh. And spring break. ;3 Yey.  
Lawl... Re-reading these notes, it makes it seem like I have A.D.D. or something. xD' Haha...

Okay, so here's another 'ADD' moment for you guys- It's only been about four days (five to you guys. Thanks a lot, time zones.) since the last update. o.O I'm on a roll. I think all the reading I've been doing inspired me to type out a lot of the chapters in a few days. xD  
(Oh, and by the way. Gaki means like... kid or brat. For those whom don't know.)  
Reviews motivate me to update quickly. -hinthint- -winkwink-


	15. Everything About You

**Chapter XV: Everything About You**

The bird was still squawking as it continued to fly overhead, wings beating rapidly against the wind that slowed its pace. The wind was beginning to blow stronger, and the bird was beginning to strain more as it tried to move at a quick pace. The large village walls soon filled its vision, and the bird gave a final screech, before tilting its wing and heading back into the village. Its job was done. Now to return to join the rest of the birds... It glimpsed down and quickly passed the two ninja that had followed him, allowing the wind to carry it back deeper into the village.

Minato kept moving without sparing a glance up at the bird. He frowned and took one final jump off the tree, crouching on the cement and turning his head to look over his shoulder. Kushina bursted from the small forest moments after, shaking some leaves from her hair and spitting a bit. The kunoichi came to a sudden halt behind him and growled.

"What are we waiting for?!" She demanded, raising one hand to tuck a lock of her red bangs behind her ear. She scowled when it only slipped back to cover part of her face, and moved to tuck it behind her ear again. Minato took note of this and shook his head as he got to his feet.

"I was waiting for you... But let's go..." He murmured as he turned his head to look over at the large gates before them. Minato glimpsed back at her once more and then darted past the gates, Kushina following closely behind. Kushina passed through the gates the second time that day, and she glimpsed up to see it tower over her for a moment. Then she returned her gaze down to Minato's back, following him into the forest.

They kept moving at a quick, nonstop pace, and soon Kushina was beginning to pant lightly.

"Hey... How much longer until...?" Kushina asked between inhales and exhales. Her question was answered with Minato looking back at her, then motioning with his hand up ahead. When Kushina landed on the next tree branch, she felt it shudder beneath her feet. She frowned and looked up at Minato, whom had already moved up a few trees in those couple of seconds. Kushina snorted softly and moved to catch up with him, placing her hands into a seal to start molding her chakra.

Soon enough, the two could hear the battle cries and yells that were ringing through out the Hi no Kuni.

Minato frowned and instinctively drew a kunai, blue eyes narrowing seriously as the ground shook, causing the trees to shudder beneath them. He crouched on a high tree branch with the kunai tight in his grip, eyes flickering around the battle field that was currently erupting below. Kushina landed beside him and her shoulders instantly tensed.

Just how many Iwa ninja are there? Minato's gaze quickly flitted to and fro around the battle field to make a quick estimate. Eight platoons, rough estimate, each containing four men. So around thirty two of them. Minato paled slightly and did a quick head count of the Konoha ninja that were trying to defend themselves as well as the village. Around twenty eight. A whole platoon off!

"What the hell!" Kushina must have did the math or did a quick round guess, placing her hands into a seal. "How come there aren't much Konoha nin, dattebayo?!" She hissed under her breath. Minato turned his head and just in time for the area to be covered by smoke clouds. The blond coughed slightly and shook his head, waving his arm slightly to make the smoke fade away. The Bunshins Kushina had made snarled and darted down from the branch to join the battle. Kushina herself took a kunai from her holster and twirled it by the ring. She then took it by the grip-tapped handle and darted down to join the fight. Minato stiffened slightly, but frowned and disappeared in a Shunshin.

A few Iwa nin that had been attacking the outnumbered Konoha shinobi turned their heads, before nearly being tackled over by a few of the bunshins. They were shocked at first, seeing multiple copies of a red-haired kunoichi, but quickly regained their composure and punched them off. One of the bunshins disappeared at this point, though another was already making the seals to create more backup. Another was flickering her hands in seals for a Suiton attack. Though the disadvantage was clear- there was no body of water around, so the jutsu had a rather short limit.

Still, wasn't it worth trying?

One of the Iwa ninja seemed to fed up by the constant waves of bunshins and looked around wildly, avoiding shuriken and kunai by drawing up a Doton barrier. He looked around while gritting his teeth, then snarled and raised his hand to chest level. The level his hands were moving in hand seals, his rank was clear- Jounin. On the last seal the Iwa ninja tightened his hands and tensed his shoulders.

_Doton: Daichi Tomurai!! _

The ground rumbled but then stopped shortly after. The Jounin's eyes were wide, and the blood suddenly spurt from his throat. His mouth opened and coughed up blood, splattering to the ground as he fell forward. Dead on his feet.

Minato had already moved onto the next Iwa nin before the man coughed up his blood.

Minato had an uneasy feeling as he fought the Iwa nin, killing them off one by one. He had to admit that he was still queasy, taking life after life after life. All by a simple swing of a kunai and a burst of speed. But it was for the sake of his village. If the Iwa ninja weren't stopped now, more lives would be lost. The village... would fall to their hands. Minato frowned as he stood over another Iwa body and raised his head to look around. There were quite a few Konoha corpses lying around as well, though they were fending rather well. Kushina's bunshins were visible all around, trying to aid the remaining Konoha nin or squaring off against the Iwa Jounins.

The blond frowned. Out of pure instinct he spun around in a round-house kick into the Jounin's barrel chest. The Iwa ninja coughed and stumbled, allowing Minato to hit him in the head with the ring of his kunai. The Iwa crumbled, though Minato slammed his foot onto the large man's chest, closing his eyes as the Iwa nin coughed up blood and remained still under his foot.

Kushina glimpsed over at him from where she was supporting a limping Konoha ninja, then returned her gaze to the front. There were two Iwa ninja surrounding them, a couple of her bunshins before them to try and block their path. The kunoichi looked up at the Konoha ninja, whom was panting lightly with some blood trailing down his pace and over his eye, blinding his left side. Kushina's eyes narrowed for a moment, but she quickly pushed those memories aside.

She needed to focus now.

Removing the Konoha ninja's arm from her shoulder, Kushina darted forward and used one of her bunshins as a leverage to reach the clearly-taller Iwa nin. She swung out with her foot, and clearly underestimated the man's speed. He caught her foot and flung her across the battlefield, thinking that she was one of her many bunshins. The kunoichi grunted and cringed as she landed on her side, but shifted to get to her feet.

Kushina was pulled upright and tensed, but slowly looked up and saw that it was Minato who had pulled her to her feet. She turned red slightly and mumbled a thanks, reluctantly pulling her arm out of his hand and running back to aid in the battle. Minato watched her leave for a moment, then a second later he was turned around with his sword impaling an Iwa nin's shoulder. The blond scowled when the man turned into a pile of earth and sunk to the ground, his blue eyes shooting around the area. He shook his head slightly and disappeared in a blur to dodge the barrage of shuriken that tried to rain down upon him. While Minato was dodging the weapons, he darted around the battlefield. He was slightly impressed- there were still weapons being shot after him.

Minato chuckled despite the raging battle and continued to dart around the terrain. He ran straight up a tree and then shot into another, his sword drawn to thrust at the branches. There was a cough and then the Iwa dropped to the ground, hitting a few branches along the way. Minato quickly wiped the blood off his rolled up sleeves and crouched on the tree branch, remaining hidden among the leaves. He still couldn't shake that uneasy feeling...

Kushina had re-payed the Iwa nin for throwing her across the forest grounds. She kicked him in the back of the head, instantly sending him crumbling to the ground. Kushina wondered if he was dead, but the bunshins were on him to finish the job. Kushina growled and drew some shuriken from her holster this time, crossing her arms with and then flicking them at the other Iwa ninja. A Doton barrier came up to block the simple attack. Of course.

Her gaze snapped around, before she scowled and darted for the barrier. It soon sank into the ground, but the Iwa ninja was waiting for her. The earth came alive and swept up in a wave over her, making the kunoichi skid to an urgent halt. The earth wave crashed down, and the Iwa ninja smirked. He shifted to move onto the next enemy, though when he saw that the earth had turned to mud, he stared in confusion. Soon the mud cleared up into water, and Kushina surfaced, sputtering and coughing. She blinked at the small water-filled hole, but then smirked.

The bunshins soon realized the body of water and grinned as well.

Kushina quickly raised her soaked hands to form seals, and the water around her came to life. It soon took shape of a dog, the water glowing yellow where the eyes should be. It opened its pointed jaw and then darted forward to consume the Iwa nin and drown him. The water dog continued to clamp its jaws on the struggling Iwa, then spat him out casually and then jumped onto another Jounin that attacked.

Their numbers were slowly dying.

Yet...

Minato scowled as he glimpsed around. His eyes narrowed when he did another count, finding a couple of Iwa ninja missing. He even counted the bodies real fast and then gritted his teeth. Minato sheathed his weighted sword and lowered into a crouch, disappearing and then reappearing on a tree branch overhead. He concentrated, trying to ignore all the chakra flares going on below him.

There!

Minato's eyes snapped open and he looked in the eastern direction. It was small and barely noticeable... But there was definitely a small flare of chakra...!

The blond frowned and looked down, eyes widening when he saw a Doton move headed his way. He quickly disappeared, and the branch he was once standing on was reduced to several splinters of wood. Minato darted down the earth spear and flickered out of sight. He quickly slashed at the user of the jutsu, though he had moved one decibel slow since the Iwa managed to strike out at him as well. Luckily it only nicked the surface of Minato's vest, while Minato managed to slash out at the Iwa ninja's eye.

The Jounin screamed in agony and his hands instantly shot up to his face, so Minato took the opportunity to slam his fist into the man's throat a couple of times. The Iwa Jounin coughed violently and then collapsed to the dirt without another sound.

Another Iwa ninja scowled and glared darkly at Minato, but quickly assessed the battlefield. They had the Konoha ninja outnumbered at the beginning of the battle. Then two teenagers show up and Konoha gained the upper hand.

_What the hell was going on?!_

The blond was some speed demon, and the kunoichi just kept coming up with bunshins and then pummeling the Jounin senseless, or drowning them with some odd Suiton move.

He scowled but his eyes widened. Instinct or luck was on his side that time, since he drew a kunai to barely deflect Minato's sudden attack.

In a flash, the blond was gone.

Again, instinct overtook the Iwa ninja and he spun around to deflect the attack with his kunai, though the impact made his arm ache and tremble. The Jounin smirked despite the pain, and Minato growled.

"I'm impressed... You're the first to last this long with me..." Minato murmured darkly. The Iwa ninja smirked but then pulled back, turning his head to look around.

"Pull back! Retreat for now!!" He yelled.

A couple of the Iwa ninja looked dumbfounded at this, giving a couple of Konoha ninja- as well as Kushina's bunshins -a chance to attack or finish them off. The Iwa Jounin that managed to survive against Minato scowled, shot Minato a glare, then disappeared in a blur. A couple of the smarter Iwa ninja exchanged glances with each other, but followed suite, one of them sinking into the ground.

Heavy silence filled the air. The air was still tense, but slowly it began to calm. A couple of the Konoha Jounin collapsed to the ground with a relieved sigh and then cheering weakly. The others joined in shortly.

Minato was scowling. He ignored the cheering and concentrated on the chakra of the fleeing Iwa ninja, blue eyes narrowing as he turned his head back in the eastern direction.

Kushina's mouth twitched as she watched him, clearly confused as to why he wasn't celebrating their victory. Her eyes widened when he disappeared. Without thinking, she shot after him, following his chakra path and leaving her bunshins with the Konoha ninja. _Blondy...?_ Kushina questioned inside her head, having a hard time keeping up with Minato's speed, but she could sense his chakra and continued to follow. The kunoichi frowned and kept following, wondering the distance between her and the remaining Konoha platoons. After what, to Kushina, seemed to be about a minute or so, she frowned and dropped down to the ground, crouching to lessen the impact on her knees.

She remained in that position and then slowly go up. Where did Minato go? His chakra suddenly... disappeared.

A hand was placed over her mouth and Kushina was yanked backwards. Her eyes widened as she stumbled backwards into some foliage, about to thrash and bite down on the hand that covered her mouth.

"Shhh..." Minato whispered as he crouched behind the line of foliage, his hand still over Kushina's mouth. Kushina tilted her head upwards to look at him, then blushed when she realized that she was leaning back against his chest slightly. She tried to sit up, though Minato held her down. His sharp blue eyes were staring over the wall of bushes, before narrowing into a glare. Kushina shuddered when she saw the expression, but suddenly she didn't feel the ground beneath her. The wind whipped at her face, making her hair fly all around. Once she no longer felt them moving, she raised her hands to fix her hair so that they weren't in her eyes.

Kushina stiffened as the ground exploded several yards away, red-brown eyes wide before she slowly turned her head towards Minato's direction. He was still crouching besides her, eyes still fixated on the same direction. Kushina slowly lowered her hands, only to get her right arm yanked on by Minato.

The blond Jounin pulled her down a ditch, dust flying into the air as he skidded. Though the two eventually stumbled the rest of the way, landing roughly at the bottom and coughing softly against the dirt and dust. Kushina groaned and slowly pushed herself upright, glaring at Minato.

"Wha-"

"Shh." Minato raised his index finger to his mouth, not bothering to brush the dust off his clothing or skin. He slowly and carefully crept up the side of the ditch, before jumping back down and ducking his head. The ground exploded again, and some showers of rocks and dust came down upon them. Kushina managed to protect her head, flinching when she felt a few rocks hitting her forearm.

Minato was scowling when she looked up.

"There's about another twenty of them..." He hissed under his breath. Kushina had a hard time understanding what he was saying, so she moved closer.

"They were planning on going around the main battle to ambush the village... Or maybe they planned to 'retreat', then attack while everyone was resting..." He continued to hiss, mapping out different scenarios. Kushina frowned, and was half tempted to look up, but another shower of dust stopped her.

"Wait here." Minato murmured. When Kushina raised her head to protest, he was gone. She scowled.

Minato reappeared at the top of the fairly steep ditch, remaining hidden behind the trees. He frowned and blue eyes narrowed. He recognized the Iwa Jounin he was squaring off with earlier, muttering to the fresher Iwa platoon.

The blond Jounin continued to frown as he concealed himself. The dust managed to conceal his skin, though he still had to keep himself hidden well, thanks to his hair coloring. The didn't seem to notice him, so Minato went and did another head count of the Iwa platoons. So he was right, there were four platoons each with their four-man cells, and then there was the few that managed to escape, so a total of about twenty or so. Minato scowled slightly and slowly turned his head to look back at the ditch.

Even if Kushina was able to create the same number of Bunshins, it still wouldn't be enough...

If only there was some way to just kill all of them instantly!

Minato mentally hit himself. _Of course!! _How could he forget?

Carefully not to create any sound, Minato turned to dive back down the ditch, though he wasn't scowling when he went down, having just thought of another idea to add onto the one he thought of a couple of seconds ago. Kushina looked up at him, tucking the annoying lock of hair behind her left ear. She frowned and closed her eyes when Minato wildly brushed the dirt and dust out of his hair, slightly brushing his clothing as well.

"How many kunai knives do you have, Kushina-san?" Minato asked in a hushed tone, quickly drawing his kunai from his holster and shifting to pull the rest of them out of his weapon pouch. He lined them all up, being sure they didn't scrape against each other noisily. Kushina raise a brow.

"I'm sure kunai alone won't stop the, 'tebayo..." The kunoichi muttered under her breath. Minato shook his head.

"There's more to it..." He murmured with a light grin. Kushina rose a brow slightly, but then shifted and pulled out all of the kunai she had. While Kushina was doing this, Minato dug through his weapon pouch again and then pulled out a shuriken. Shaking his head, he removed the pouch from his back and held it before him, opening it and pulling out a small paper seal that had a series of unreadable runes all jumbled up. He placed the pouch down then stuck the seal onto the shuriken, turning to fling it behind him and into the distance. Blue eyes shone a bit as his grin widened.

_It works..._

"What's your idea?" Kushina growled as she set out two sets of kunai, each set containing four of the knife-like weapons. Minato quickly counted the all the kunai added up together, and frowned slightly when they were short a few weapons. He thought about using shuriken for a moment, but shook his head and decided against it. He would just have to strike two enemies with a couple of kunai.

"Kushina-san..." Minato whispered as he began coiling the seals onto the handles of the kunais. The kunoichi looked up so Minato continued. "Do you remember? Back when we first met... I told you that I was developing a jutsu..." He trailed off into a light grin, despite the fact that there were six enemy platoons slowly approaching. Kushina blinked as she registered this, then her eyes widened.

"You mastered it?!" She whispered back. Minato chuckled as he continued placing the seals onto the handles.

"Yeah... Climb to the top of the ditch with all these kunai... And start flinging them at the platoons..." He ordered quietly without removing his gaze from the kunais. He placed the last kunai in the row and examined them all with a slight nod. "Try not to send two kunai at the same area, if you can..." Minato looked up and met her gaze. "I'll handle the rest."

Kushina slowly nodded and grinned slightly. "Is this the first time you'll be using the jutsu like this, datte'sa?"

"Yup."

"I'm honored, datte'sa." She snorted softly but nodded as she began gathering the kunais. It was proven rather difficult, so she pulled out some lengths of wire and strung it through the rings of the weapons. Kushina tested the wire a bit, and nodded when it was a thin one. She could easily just yank the kunais off. Kushina strung the wired weapons around her neck, being careful not to cut her legs or stomach as she climbed up the ditch. Minato watched her, before he shifted to create hand signs, closing his eyes on the last seal and concentrating.

Kushina climbed to the top of the ditch, ducking behind some bushes and cursing when all the kunais clattered noisily. The Iwa ninja were instantly on guard, one of them stepping forward.

"Who's there?!" He demanded. Kushina frowned but shook her head and got to her feet, one of the kunais already in hand. She shifted to step over the bushes, frowning at the sight of all of them.

"Che... It's just a kunoichi..."

"Hey!" One of the Iwa ninja from the previous battle growled. "It's that kunoichi with all the bunshins!"

A ripple of unease moved through the platoons, the ninja parting their feet and growling amongst themselves. Kushina raised her free hand up to shoulder height.

"Oi, oi... I'm out of chakra from all those bunshins... I suppose you can that this is a last-pitch attack..." The kunoichi looked down at the kunai she held in her hand, before she flung it at the Iwa ninja. Two feet before it could hit the first Iwa ninja, the weapon disappeared. The Iwa Jounin standing in the front looked dumbfounded, but his eyes widened with shock and he fell forward. Blood trailed from a wound on his neck.

"Oh... Did I mention? Try not to blink..." Kushina heard the whisper coming from behind her and looked over her shoulder, finding that Minato wasn't there. Kushina frowned and returned her gaze to the front, grinning slightly as she yanked off a few more kunai.

"Impressive, blondy!" She called out loudly as she threw a couple of more kunai. They disappeared once more, and two more men fell to the ground. More unease rippled through the ground, the platoons slowly shifting backwards to get away from the corpses.

"'blondy...'?" The Iwa Jounin from the previous battle scowled suddenly and flicked some of his dusty brown hair from his eyes. "Dammit! Watch yourselves!! This kid is fast!"

Three more kunais. Three more men fell to the ground. The brown-haired Jounin's scowl deepened as he sharpened his senses as well as his eyes, watching as Kushina moved around to throw more kunai knives. He watched the weapons that disappeared in a blur.

Yellow.

It was definitely the blond Konoha nin alright.

"Attack the girl!! Don't just stand around like nothing!" The Jounin snarled. The Iwa ninja shuffled to regain their composure, before a couple of them darted forward at the kunoichi. Kushina blinked in surprise.

"Uh-oh..." She muttered partially to herself, flinging a kunai in their direction before she darted up a tree. Kushina inwardly cursed when her footing slipped, but she managed to clamber onto the branch before she could fall. From there she jumped onto another branch, dropping a couple of weapons idle down at the Iwa ninja.

Kushina blinked once more when she felt the ground shaking, and sighed. Time to get serious. She disappeared in a shunshin, and thanked that she had moved quickly since the tree was suddenly uprooted by a Doton jutsu. Growling she began to circle the battle field, still throwing the kunais. More men began to fall. Kushina landed silently in one tree and crouched, looking down to do a quick count of the remaining kunais. Her gaze snapped up when the tree shifted, and she quickly dropped down to kick the Iwa nin below.

The Iwa ninja was preparing for that, quickly grabbing her foot and suspending her upside down in midair. Kushina yelped at this, scrambling to grab one of the kunais off the wire to try and stab the man. The Iwa nin chuckled at this and turned to look back at the remaining platoon.

"Got 'er..."

Kushina scowled and continued to writhe upside-down. She blinked when she felt the kunai being yanked from her grip. A moment after a sharp choke came from the large Iwa. His grip on her foot was released and Kushina fell, only to be caught by Minato. The blond was panting lightly, one arm beneath Kushina's back while the other hand held the kunai he took from Kushina. It was still pointed at the Iwa ninja, but Minato lowered his arm when the man fell backwards, blood puddling the ground from a wound in the man's head.

"Try be more careful, Kushina-san..." Minato swallowed and his breathing rate returning to normal. His eyes widened and he quickly allowed Kushina to stand upright on her own. The kunoichi frowned when she was released quickly, but slowly nodded. "Sorry..."

"Just a few kunai left..." Minato murmured as he handed the kunai he was holding to the kunoichi. Kushina silently took the kunai and nodded.

"About... two platoons of them..." Minato muttered partially to himself. Kushina nodded in silence a third time. She shifted and lashed out to fling the kunai, and Minato disappeared from her side the moment she felt the metal ring skim past her fingers. Kushina blinked in surprise when she saw three of the Iwa ninja fall to the ground this time, each of them carrying a wound in vital spots- one in the head, another in the throat, and the third had blood coming from his chest.

"Spread out!! They're almost out of weapons!!" The Jounin from the previous fight snarled as he disappeared in a Shunshin to try and catch Minato.

The aforementioned blond smirked tiredly from where he crouched on a nearby branch, panting inaudibly as he glimpsed down at Kushina below. His blue eyes narrowed when he saw that some of the Iwa jounin were beginning to target her, and quickly dropped down. The kunai that Kushina had thrown was instantly in his hand and he quickly lashed out with it, cursing at the flaw of using regular kunais.

They were too light.

Nevertheless, Minato managed to put a gash in the man's stomach and quickly spun to kick the wound, making him screech and stumble backwards. Minato didn't finish, quickly lashing out at the second Iwa Jounin, this time aiming for the throat. The man crumpled and Minato didn't dare look down. He recycled the kunai he had and quickly flung it, shifting his footing and lurching forward again to disappear from where he once stood before Kushina.

The scenery blurred around Minato, and in an instant he reached out for the kunai as it headed for the next target. To his surprise the kunai was caught, and a fist was thrown his way. Minato dug his heels in and managed to lean back in time to avoid the attack, jumping back a few paces. "...!?"

It was the brown-haired Jounin that was constantly yelling orders. He growled and snapped his gaze over his shoulder at the remaining Iwa ninja, which was about only five or six men.

"Retreat back to our side of the border before more Konoha ninja arrive!" He ordered snappishly. The remaining Iwa nin exchanged nervous glances and some mutters, but obeyed and disappeared in multiple blurs of Shunshins. Once they left, the remaining Iwa Jounin dropped the kunai to the ground, pressing his zori-covered foot on it heavily. He raised his hands to chest level and clapped leisurely a few times.

"Truly marvelous... Having defeated five platoons on your own..." The Jounin smirked down at Minato. "Those men are rather slow-moving... I am one of the fastest Iwa has to offer." He finally removed his foot from the kunai to show that it was half buried in the ground and covered in dirt.

"Iwata Masuhita!" The Jounin introduced with a light smirk. "And your name, you little speed demon?"

"..." Minato hesitated for a moment. "Namikaze Minato... and Uzumaki Kushina." He added with a quick glimpse over his shoulder. Kushina's eyes widened for a moment, before she slowly calmed down and straightened herself. She looked down at the remaining kunais on the wire, and pulled them up. Two left.

"Namikaze, ka?" Masuhita continued to smirk as he parted his feet, drawing two kunais for both hands. "Uzumaki... I'll remember those names."

"Blondy!" Minato jumped slightly but looked over his shoulder, soon catching the remaining kunai that were thrown at him. His blue eyes widened as he looked back at the kunoichi, whom decided to lean against a tree.

"It's your fight... I can't move half the speed you guys are going, datte'sa..." Kushina grumbled in disappointment, discarding the wire from around her shoulders and tossing it on the ground. Minato nodded slowly in response, before he turned to look back at the Iwa ninja before him. Minato instantly raised his kunais to defend himself from the sudden attack, jumping backwards into a Shunshin. Masuhita followed a second behind, and Kushina scowled. Her eyes flickered around the clearing as she tried to get a glimpse of any visible blurs. She saw some sparks form and heard metal clashing, flinching at the ringing noise it created in her ears.

Minato flinched as the kunais clashed once more. Masuhita smirked as they paused on the tree tops, their weapons locked together and quivering against the force. Minato gritted his teeth. He was beginning to feel the effects of the constant clashes. His arm was growing sore and he was beginning to grow tired as well. The repetitive use of the Hiraishin was beginning to take its toll. He had to finish this before it was too late.

In unison the two disappeared again, and Minato's eyes widened. His own speed was beginning to drop as well. He gritted his teeth once more and quickly threw the kunai that rested in his left hand, turning his footing and disappearing after it. Masuhita knocked the kunai off course, and Minato appeared where it had flung, quickly catching it over his head then frowning. _That's not going to work anymore..._ Minato quickly lurched forward in a shunshin, this time appearing behind Masuhita and spinning to lash out.

Masuhita clearly wasn't lying when he said he was one of the speedy ninjas of his village, spinning around as well to counter the attack. Minato's eyes narrowed and he quickly pushed off Masuhita's back to disappear in another shunshin.

_...! Got him!_

Minato stopped to catch his breath on a nearby tree, his shoulders rising and falling as he made sure to keep his breaths inaudible as possible. He swallowed a bit once his breathing rate returned to normal and disappeared forward. He felt Masuhita stiffen under his grip.

The blond's blue gaze flickered down at the small Hiraishin seal he had managed to get on the back of Masuhita's shoulder, as nodded. He clung to the back of the Iwa ninja's back via chakra, one hand on the man's shoulder while the other held a kunai to his throat.

Kushina saw this and a wide grin spread across her face. _Got 'im..._

Masuhita smirked. "Well well... I'm impressed, Namikaze."

"Sorry." Minato murmured warily. "Iwata Masuhita... I'll remember your name as well." He murmured before adjusting the kunai to lodge it into the man's throat. He felt it go halfway through his flesh...

Before Masuhita disappeared in a cloud of smoke and a _poof_!

Minato's eyes narrowed as he landed back on his feet. "A bunshin?!" He said out loud to show how shocked he was. Kushina's own eyes widened from where she stood. _The whole time...?!_

"Congratulations, Namikaze." Masuhita's voice was audible from a tree branch high above their heads, causing the two Konoha ninja to look upwards. Masuhita was crouching at the edge of a branch, which was bending, threatening to snap under his weight. The Iwa ninja was smirking widely.

"Color me impressed... I could probably finish you off and then kill the girl- Uzumaki... but I'll spare your lives as a reward." He chuckled and paused for several moments. He opened his eyes and looked down at Minato once more.

"I'll let them know. My people.. That there's a yellow flash in Konoha's arsenal. One that is capable of taking several lives in an instant." Masuhita shifted to stand on the branch, but moved backwards so that it would support his weight. He continued to smirk.

"I look forward to the day we meet in combat again. Farewell, Kiroi Senkou of Konoha. Farewell, Uzumaki Kushina."

And in an instant the branch snapped, falling down before getting caught in other branches. Masuhita was gone.

The air was heavy for several seconds, before Minato finally released the breath he didn't know he was holding and collapsed to the ground. He grumbled and shifted to remove the sword from his back, allowing it to drop onto the ground with a small plume of dust.

"That was amazing, blondy!!" Kushina darted forward from where she was watching, skidding a bit before she lowered onto her knees besides him. Minato smiled warily as he turned to look at her.

"Haha... I think I overdid it, though..." He murmured, slowly blinking and then closing his eyes when he felt his vision beginning to fade black at the edges. Minato swayed a bit from where he sat, but was soon steadied when Kushina placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I think you should lay down for a bit, 'tebayo..." Kushina murmured softly. Minato opened his eyes tiredly and looked at her, before he nodded, too tired to protest. He shifted to lay down, and blinked when he felt Kushina's hands pulling him carefully onto a soft surface. He felt blood rushing to his cheeks when he realized where his head was resting, looking directly up at Kushina's eyes.

The kunoichi was grinning as he looked up, moving to tuck her hair behind her ear. "I'll lend you my lap for a bit, alright? Take a catnap and I'll wake you up in a few, dattebayo."

Minato smiled back warily, before he closed his eyes again and exhaled. Cheeks warm, the blond soon drifted off to sleep.

* * *

_"... You're.. looking pretty happy there, 'Nato..."_

_"Why wouldn't I be, sensei? I stopped five platoons of Iwa ninja by myself... with Kushina-san's help, of course.."_

_"...? Sensei...?"_

_"... Look, Minato... Frankly, you know how it is... It's a war.. lives are lost..."_

_"...? ... What are you getting at, sensei?"_

_"Sensei?"_

_"... Geez... I'm not sure... How are you going to react, Minato...?"_

_"... Sensei... Don't tell me..."_

_"... Yeah... Your parents..."_

They're dead.

* * *

Kushina panted warily as she ran through the village. The streets were already beginning to darken, and she could probably get lost.

It didn't matter. Not that this moment.

She stumbled a bit but quickly regained her footing and continued running. It's only been a day since she last saw Minato... his cheerful aura... It was back after practically a year.

She didn't want it to vanish now. Not again. Not after she just came back...

Kushina eventually slowed her pace once she reached some trees, placing her hand on the bark and hanging her head as she panted heavily, a wheeze escaping her every few exhales. The cold winter air was beginning to roll in, and she shuddered slightly. Raising her head, she pulled her hand off the tree and continued running.

Just several minutes ago, Sae had told her about two deaths.

Minato's parents.

The memorial stone? What was Kushina kidding? She didn't know. All she got out of Sae before running off was that it was in the usual training grounds. A small rectangular stone with several names written upon it. Kushina barely stopped as the old fence came into view, quickly jumping on it and hissing slightly when she cut her arm on it. The kunoichi paused for a moment to check if it was bleeding. It was, but it was sluggish and slow. So she ignored it and continued running into the training grounds.

His fingers delicately trailed across the names, freshly engraved to the stone that day. It could feel the kanji letters of 'ocean' and then 'wind', before the katakana for 'Touza' could be felt. Minato raised his head from between his knees, blue eyes pale as he stared at the darkening letters. The shadows his fingers had once casted were beginning to fade out, indication of the approaching night.

"... So you're gone forever..." Minato murmured, his voice piercing through the silence in the air. Slowly, he ran his fingers along his mother's name. "... I guess I have mixed feelings about this... I loved you both... yet at the same time, disliked you for being so stuck up about the rules..."

Warily, Minato leaned back, propping himself up with one arm. "... Well? Now that you're gone... What do you want me to do?"

"... Keep living your life..."

Minato laughed bitterly. "I've heard that somewhere before..." He didn't look up as he continued to stare at the names. Unconsciously, the tears trailed down his cheeks and onto the ground. He gritted his teeth and closed his eyes, his hands clenching into fists. "Keep living my life...? My parents... if they had they chance they would probably say 'Don't mess up, or you'll wind up dead like us.'"

"... I know it hurts-"

"Just what do you know?!" Minato snapped. "You don't know what I'm going through right now!!" He raised his head and opened his eyes to look up at the person, and blue instantly widened and his mouth dropped. "Kushina-san-"

"Oh yeah?!" Kushina snapped back, her own fists clenched as tears streaked down her face. "Well newsflash for you, asshole!! I'm trying to cheer you up! If anyone should be crying, it should be me!! I'm the one who lost my _entire village_!!" The kunoichi shuddered violently. She spat and turned around, bending her knees slightly to disappear in a high-speed shunshin. Minato had gotten to his feet at this point, his hand raised as if trying to reach out for her. She was gone.

Minato heavily dropped his arm back down to his side, swaying a bit before it held still. He frowned sadly and looked down as he reached into his pocket, fingering a small item that he had bought just yesterday...

He messed up. Big time.

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **Ooh, lots and lots of action in this chapter for you guys. x3  
I promise- everyone's patience and loyalty to the fic will be rewarded in the next chapter. ;3 If not, everyone has the right to maul me with bricks and shot guns. ... Though it isn't necessary because I promised! Dx

Man, you guys seriously don't know how happy your reviews make me. D: First of all, this fic is nothing compared to a couple of other MinatoxKushina stories I've seen... Second of all, I'm sick again. (Yes, I am a rather sickly person. Weak immunity, if I had to guess.) So reading all the reviews I get makes me happy. x.x

Haha! I have to admit that I'm rather satisfied with how this chapter came out. C: ... Except for that one italicized part. Dx I think I could've done a bit better, but the chapter was getting pretty long... (Wait, there's such thing as too long a chapter?!) But bleh... I wanted to leave enough room for the part with Kushina looking for him. I felt that part was a little more important than the news of 'Nato's parents deaths.. x.x

But be excited for the next chapter, everyone. I've promised up there that you all shall be rewarded next. ;3 Keep a look out, and I'll see you guys in a bit.


	16. Savin' Me

**Chapter XVI: Savin' Me**

Kushina scowled darkly as she stormed down the streets, ignoring the drunks that were trailing down the streets and the strong aroma of alcohol that clung to the air. Her glare was fixated on the path before her, which was already dark and illuminated a yellow hue from the old street lights. Hot tears streaked down her face as her hands clenched into tight fists by her sides. She continued to storm aimlessly down the road, before she finally growled and flung her arm at a nearby wall, flinching when the vibrations traveled up to her shoulders. She also winced at the texture of the wall, feeling the rough surface against her knuckles

The kunoichi whimpered and then collapsed against the wall, ignoring the pain in her shoulder and knuckles as she rested her head against the rough wall.

Tears fell freely now, staining her cheeks as well as part of her jaw and neck. She broke down into sobs, choking slightly against the sharp breaths that she took. Kushina's head tilted downwards as she continued sobbing, dark spots appearing on the cement where her tears dropped.

_Why? Why why why why? _

It hurts to lose someone, but to lose your all your family members, your friends, your _home_ was far worse...

Kushina hiccoughed a few times as she choked, raising one hand to futilely wipe away the tears. They trailed past her hand and continued down her face or onto the ground.

All she wanted to do was comfort him... Since they shared a similar pain..

"Oh god..." Kushina slowly slid to the ground, ignoring the scratches she received from the wall's texture. She shivered and raised her hands to hold the sides of her heads, bleary eyes widening as the images of her village's destruction flashed through her mind. _Stop... stop thinking about it!! _

She was beginning to feel sick to the stomach as she remembered all the blood that was shed that night. Her face paled slightly and she forced herself to swallow a couple of times. One of the last things she wanted right now was to barf...

Kushina managed to get past the nausea, but she continued to sit there against the wall. She lowered her arms back onto her lap, her gaze soon following down. She wanted to back to after the battle, when Minato was sleeping with his head on her lap... Kushina stifled a light sob as it returned, the memory of when he snapped at her. Her tears fell past her cheeks and onto her hands, but she ignored them and continued to cry.

_Why...?_

There was suddenly a hollow feeling in her chest. Kushina slowly blinked, the last bit of her tears falling and trailing dreadfully slow down her cheeks. So she quickly wiped them away and shifted from where she sat on the ground. She winced in silence from the pain of having sitting there for a while, then she began to wonder how long she had been there. Kushina looked up and blinked in surprise of how dark the streets were, aside from the lights that illuminated the way. Her mouth twitched before she slowly pushed herself to her feet, wincing once more when her bones cracked audibly.

Kushina stared down blankly at the black path ahead of her, turning her head to look at the nearest streetlights. It flickered slightly before remaining alight, some bugs visibly flitting around the light source.

The red-haired kunoichi frowned before she sighed heavily and hung her head, moving forward and down the dark street. Only now did she seem to notice the alcoholic aroma and grimaced. She did her best to ignore it as she continued down the street. Her gaze occasionally flickered to the opened bars, though she shook her head at the slurred murmurs and returned her gaze to the front. For a moment, her eyes began to water but she quickly frowned and rubbed her eyes, forcing herself to stop crying.

Kushina paused at a corner and turned her head to look down, frowning at the night clubs and shaking her head, moving to continue down the same, dark street. She looked up and saw that there were no more street lights after a couple of buildings, and cursed under her breath. Seeing no other alternative, the kunoichi turned around to trail back to the corner and down that street. Kushina scowled and made sure to keep her eyes glued to the front, ignoring the bars, clubs, and brothels. Though she turned her head to spit at one point, and shuddered when she saw some half-drunk middle-aged men staring at her. So she quickened her pace to continue down the dimly-lit road.

A frown crossed her face as she carried on trailing down one street, which eventually lead onto another which was practically similar to the last. She groaned and stopped to slap her forehead.

Oh great... On top of being hurt, she was _lost_. At night.

"I'm an idiot..." Kushina muttered to herself as she turned another corner. It was a dead end that time, so she turned around and tried the road opposite. The path was longer this time, and she continued down it for some time until three more paths opened up to her. Another groan escaped her. Three more ways to get lost.

"O_kay_... Maybe I'll go back the way I came... Go back to the training grounds... At least I know where to go from there, 'tebayo..." The kunoichi grumbled as she turned around once more. She turned the corner and trailed back down the street, continuing to go back the way she came until she paused at one intersection.

_Oh crap... I think I took a wrong turn..._ The kunoichi glimpsed over her shoulder, but decided against going back to try again. She was already lost as it is..

Kushina grumbled as she trailed down the dimly-lit streets, glimpsing around and sighing at how dark it was. She looked upwards and frowned when the quarter-moon was obscured by thin clouds, providing little light. She took another look around at her surroundings, and shivered as some drunks loped out of a bar, singing with slurred chorus.

"'Ey! Little lady!"

The kunoichi jumped when she heard the same drunks calling out to her, and instinctively sprinted forward to create a large, _large_ gap between her and the drunkards. More panic was beginning to grip at her, and tears began to gather at the corner of her eyes once more.

_I'm lost during the night in one of the biggest shinobi villages... surrounded by drunks and whores... Crap, _please_ let me find my way back somehow!! _Kushina inwardly begged as she swallowed a lump in her throat and sharply turned a corner. There was a thin layer of dirt, so her footing slipped and Kushina tumbled to the ground. She cringed then coughed a few times to try and regain the breath that was knocked out of her. She groaned and coughed once more, shaking her head as she slowly pushed herself to her feet. In the semi-darkness, she saw a hand held out before her.

Blinking, Kushina looked up, slightly relieved at seeing a boy probably only a few years older than she was, wearing a hitai-ate across his forehead.

"Kind of a bad spill you had there..." Kushina didn't detect any slurred vowels and concluded that he wasn't drunk or anything. Sighing, she took his hand and instantly got pulled her to her feet.

"Thanks..." She muttered, her hands brushing the dirt off her clothing and some of her face. The teenager smiled back and raised his own hand to brush some of his bangs out of his eyes.

"You shouldn't really be running around at night, anyway... Might miss some pot holes and fall... Or in your case, over nothing." He chuckled under his breath. Kushina glimpsed at him, grumbling under her breath as she continued to brush herself clean.

"Well... I was having a panic-attack, dattebayo..." Kushina mumbled. "I'm lost..."

"And you didn't bother to stop for directions?"

"I'm surrounded by drunks and whores! Who else am I supposed to ask?!"

"Ha ha... True..." The black-haired teenager gave a wry smile. "Which part of the village are you headed?"

"... Training grounds, 'tebayo." Kushina murmured after a sigh. She frowned when the other shinobi burst into a fit of snickers.

"That's it? Though you're quite a ways off from it." He turned his head towards one direction, and Kushina followed. She frowned and nodded.

"Just straight down here, then? Thanks..." She muttered. Sighing once more, Kushina turned to head down the road that was directed, fidgeting slightly as she felt herself being followed. She looked over her shoulder, and soon the shinobi from moments ago bounded up to walk besides her.

"You're going to get lost..." He pointed out. Kushina frowned and folded her arms, continuing to walk. He snorted but continued to walk along side of her, turning his head back to the front.

The two walked in silence, one in which was already growing awkward for the kunoichi. She fidgeted as she walked, fiddling with her fingers or tucking that annoying lock of hair back behind her ear. Kushina jumped when she felt him moving closer, but slowly calmed when he murmured to turn right a second later. They continued to walk down the street in silence, the older shinobi murmuring to turn left or right every now and then.

Kushina blinked as she saw a familiar rocky wall down another short street, grinning and moving forward. She looked up and down the street, sighing in relief as she recognized it. The kunoichi tilted her head to look up at the shinobi whom caught up to her a few seconds later.

"Thanks, man... You saved my butt, 'tebayo."

"You know the rest of the way?"

"Yup." Kushina was still grinning as she looked back down one direction. She moved forward, but was stopped with a question.

"Ha ha. Not going to tell your savior your name, at least?"

Kushina blinked in response to this, but shrugged. She paused and turned back around to face him.

"Uzuma...ki..." She trailed off. Kushina's eyes widened slightly as she stared back at a pair of red eyes that glowed slightly against the night. The pupil was black, and there were three visible _tomoes_ surrounding the pupil. Kushina's own pupils narrowed when she found that she couldn't move, and inwardly hissed then yelled at herself to try and move one of her limbs. Yet her gaze was glued to the red-and-black Kekkei Genkai. Kushina inwardly continued to swear. What the hell was going on?!

"Hey, it's all right..." The Uchiha smiled, though it made the kunoichi shudder this time.

For a split second, she could feel her body move and she turned around. Only to get her path blocked by the older shinobi. Kushina shivered slightly and slowly moved back, eyes narrowing when she felt the wall press roughly into her back. The Uchiha stepped forward and slammed his palm onto the wall besides her head, causing Kushina to flinch at the force.

On the verge of hyperventilation, the kunoichi tried to keep her gaze lowered from his. "Wh.. what are you going to...?"

Kushina felt her head tilt upwards, his hand at her chin and her gaze soon becoming locked on his Sharingan. Kushina's breathing calmed, though it was still shaky and slightly audible against the night. The Uchiha's chuckles rolled over the shaken pants.

"Don't worry about it and just relax..." The kunoichi heard him whisper by her ear, before his mouth moved to touch the curve of her neck. Kushina flinched and cringed to try and get away, though his body pinned hers to the brick wall.

"Sto..." Was all she managed to get out. Kushina gasped sharply and continued to cringe, feeling him move from her neck to the pit of her throat.

"Pl.. ease..." She tried to plead this time. A low chuckle was her only response. That and the slip of her half-robe falling to the edge of her shoulders. Her eyes widened then she shakily tried to raise her arm to stop him, only to get stopped by the Sharingan looking back at her. He took the hand that was being raised and also pinned it to the wall, smirking lightly as his other hand moved to trace the curve of her neck then down to her robe to push it down past her shoulder.

"Ah... fishnets..." The Uchiha chuckled hauntingly. His hand moved down and trailed across her smooth skin before stopping at the start of the fishnet layer. He slipped his fingers under the mesh wires, causing the kunoichi to flinch and try and break free.

"Stop..." Kushina moaned as she suppressed a shiver. "I'm... begging..."

"Only makes it more appealing, babe..."

Kushina slowly managed to curl her fingers into a fist, gritting her teeth before she closed her eyes, a few tears falling down. _Crap. Crap crap crap crap... Move..! Do something or else-!_

Her eyes widened as she felt him tracing the curve of her waist, slowly making way towards... _Oh god, no!! _

The kunoichi somehow managed to find the strength to thrash around. Though he pinned her securely to the wall, and her thrashing was halted when his red-black gaze shifted up to her. Kushina stiffened but she slowly felt her eyelids beginning to drop. Her panting grew shallow, and then her tears slowed slightly, but still rolled down her cheeks.

Kushina tilted her head back and cringed, trying to stifle another moan. She couldn't suppress the shiver after she heard the Uchiha chuckle. More and more tears gathered as she closed her eyes, not wanting to see as he continued to touch her in explicit areas. _Someone... Nii-san... Sae... blondy..!! Anyone..!! He..lp... _

"Ack..!!"

Kushina no longer felt the Uchiha's hands roaming her body, though she felt another hand on her arm to pull her off the wall and onto a warmer, comfortable surface. Kushina shivered and opened her eyes, finding she was able to move now. Though when she opened her eyes, she saw nothing but black. She turned her head when she heard a choking sound, and jumped when she felt an arm around her exposed shoulders. Her eyes widened as she saw the Uchiha suspended in mid air, his fingers scrambling at the hand that was holding him by the throat.

Minato's glare was narrowed on a dangerous level of blood lust.

His grip tightened on the Uchiha's throat, making the clan member struggle more desperately for air.

More than anything did Minato want to torture the older man. To make him suffer, _pay_ for what he was about to do to Kushina.

Angered adrenaline coursing through him, Minato gritted his teeth and tightened his grip further. His eyes were still narrowed in the glare. He was half tempted to actually _kill_ the Uchiha. Then Minato felt Kushina shift in his arm and his eyes widened as reality was brought back to him. Though the blond frowned then gingerly released the older shinobi.

The Uchiha stumbled on his feet, instantly backing away from the other Jounin while his hand rubbed his bruised throat.

"You could've strangled me to death!!" The Uchiha had lost his cool composure he had several minutes ago, his hand still at his throat. Minato only frowned and continued to glare.

"I had every right to strangle you..." Minato replied back. There was a bit of an edge in his voice, close on the verge of snapping. The Uchiha frowned and backed away once more.

"Tch..."

"I think it'd be better for _all of us_ if you left..." Minato growled. "I'm not afraid to report such behavior of an Uchiha to Hokage-sama..."

"..." The Uchiha continued to scowl at this, though his bloodline had slowly faded when he was being strangled by the blond. He turned his head to spit and then his shoulders squared before he disappeared in a blur. The cold wind rolled in, making the night seem more ominous.

Minato forced himself to calm down, before he turned his head and looked down at the kunoichi. Kushina had shifted so that she was burying her face in his vest-covered shoulder. The tears slipped past her eyes and dampened the area of the green vest. Minato continued to hold her against him, allowing her to cry in silence for the time being. After a while he felt her beginning to calm down, and reached out to pull her half-robe back onto her shoulders, covering her exposed skin and collarbone. Kushina sniffed a bit as she hesitantly pulled her face away from his shoulder. The kunoichi wiped her eyes and her nose, hiccupping shamefully a couple of times as well.

"Th... thank you..."

The blond Jounin only shook his head and placed a hand her covered shoulder. She flinched at this but calmed down. Minato remained silent as he steered her down the streets, keeping his arm draped across her as he guided her through the dark streets. Kushina was still shivering as she tried to hold in her tears.

Minato was in thought as he guided her through the streets. The kunoichi didn't really seem to be in the mood of talking at the moment... and he didn't know where she was staying. Maybe his home...?

Minato looked back down at the kunoichi when he felt her leaning against his side. Minato blinked slowly, but kept his arm around her shoulders protectively, feeling her shudder through his sleeve. The Jounin returned his head to the front, having made up his mind.

Kushina was still shivering as she tried to push out the thoughts of what almost happened. She tried to discard those images and continued to lean against Minato, feeling weak to the knees. She felt _safe_ with the blond's arm around her. Kushina closed her eyes and kept walking at his side, literally.

She must have fallen asleep for a while. When Kushina opened her eyes again, the hallway to the house was illuminated, causing her pupils narrow and make her head spin at the sudden lighting change.

"Sorry..." Minato murmured as he guided her into the house, both of their arms barely skimming the walls. "I don't know where you live..."

Kushina rubbed her eyes and slowly nodded. It was alright... she wanted to be with Minato right now...

"N.. no problem.. 'tebayo..." Kushina murmured on a near-inaudible level. Minato slowly nodded and raised his free hand to flick another light switch up to 'on'. The living room was illuminated instantly, which caused Kushina to cringe and close her eyes. The two just stood there for a while, leaning against him and arm around her shoulders.

After what seemed to be several minutes, Kushina gingerly tore herself from the Jounin's side, inwardly disappointed that she did that.

"Umm... Is it... alright if I take a shower real fast...?"

Minato hesitantly pulled his arm off her but nodded. "Yeah... Up the stairs and your first right..." He murmured. "I'll be down here if you need anything..."

"Thanks..." Kushina mumbled. In a timid manner, she turned and trailed up the stairs in silence, her face clearly showing how drained she was. Minato watched as she disappeared up the stairs, before he shifted to approach a door that barely stood out from the wall alongside of the stairs. He opened the door and felt around for the switch, finding it after a few seconds and then flicking it up. It took a couple of seconds for the lights to turn on in the small den, but they still worked, nevertheless.

Minato just stood in the doorway and examined the room for several minutes, then finally heard the water begin to run from upstairs. He tilted his head upwards for a second. But then he returned his gaze downwards and entered the room.

It was his father's den. He never really gave Minato any access to the room, but the blond entered anyway. There was one big couch, rather pale in coloring but comfy-looking. There was also another chair, as well as a glass-based coffee table and a small heater plugged into the corner. The Jounin moved forward to turn on the heater, spotting the picture frame on the glass table as he passed by.

Minato returned to the coffee table after setting the heater to a certain Celsius, shifting to pick up the picture and dust off the glass that held the photo in place.

* * *

Kushina hesitantly took one of the towels from the rack and dried herself off once she stepped out of the shower. She examined the bathroom for a few seconds, but then sighed and slipped on her clothing, deciding not to wear the fishnets for the rest of the night, rolling the wires into a ball and stuffing it into her weapon pouch.

_I guess I'm staying here, then..._ Kushina thought as she wrapped the cloth-like _obi_ around her waist, keeping her half-robe from opening up. She tied it securely and then pulled on her undergarment and then pants. Kushina used the same towel to ruffle her hair and dry it out a bit. The kunoichi looked in the mirror as she ran her fingers through her hair, flinching as she yanked on some knots before they smoothed over. Kushina took another moment to wring her red hair, then combed through it with her fingers once more. She frowned and neatly put the towel back onto the metal rack, before opening the door and leaving the room.

She examined the hall then looked over her shoulder to see three other doors, wondering which one was Minato's room. Kushina shook her head and sighed softly, rubbing her forehead as she walked down the wooden steps of the stairs. The kunoichi continued to examine the house that now belonged to Minato solely. After a while she looked around the living room and wondered where the blond himself was.

Kushina continued to trail around the room, before she finally noticed the open door beneath the stairs and cautiously trailed through. Instead of her gaze trailing aimlessly to examine the room, her eyes were instantly drawn to the blond, whose back was turned to her and his head lowered slightly. She carefully moved to stand beside him, staring at the small picture frame he held in his hands.

A family photo...

The kunoichi looked up at him, and she could feel her heart sink slightly. His eyes were bleary, as if on the verge of tears as he stared down at the photo. Though at the same time, he was smiling weakly. Kushina gently took the edge of the picture frame and tilted it in her direction. The first second she laid eyes on the picture, she noticed one thing almost instantly.

His parents weren't smiling.

Minato looked to be rather young at this age, only reaching up to his parents' waists. He was the only one grinning in the picture; both his arms were raised to hold the hands of his parents.

Kushina frowned sadly and released the picture frame, in which Minato lowered to place back onto the glass-based table.

"... I'm sorry.. for snapping at you earlier." Minato murmured once he removed his hand from the photograph. He raised one of his hands to wipe his eyes with the base of his palm. "I'm... not quite use to losing people around me..."

"It's alright, blondy, 'tebayo..." Kushina murmured softly as she lowered her gaze down to the floor. On a whim she leaned her head against his arm slightly, keeping her gaze tilted downwards due to the blush that was rising up to her cheeks. "Just.. try be more considerate of me, would you? ... I mean, I lost all of Uzu... my home, my family..."

Minato turned his head to look over at her, his own cheeks heating up from the blood. He smiled warily and held still for her.

"I will... I promise you that..."

"Arigatou..." She whispered. Kushina shivered slightly and rubbed her watering eyes. The two stood there for several minutes, until Kushina felt Minato shifting beneath her head. Inwardly grumbling, Kushina raised her head and looked up at him.

"Are you hungry?" Minato questioned. Kushina paused for a moment, but then slowly shook her head.

"No... Just thirsty, I guess..." She murmured. Minato nodded and turned, motioning with his hand for her to follow.

"Come.. I'll make some tea..."

Kushina slowly nodded, quietly trailing after him and out into the living room. Only then did she realize the temperature difference between the rooms, glimpsing back at the den and barely catching the heater in the corner of the other room. Kushina heard a light zip and turned to look back at the blond. Minato tiredly slid off his vest and dumped it onto the couch as he walked past, running his hands over the navy underclothing to smooth out the wrinkles. He also untied his hitai-ate and ruffled his bangs, spinning around to chuck the headband onto the couch next to the vest, then spun around into the kitchen.

Kushina just trailed over to the dining table, gingerly pulling out a seat and sitting down. She fiddled with the edge of her half-robe, sighing and resting her arm against the rest. Kushina flinched and was suddenly reminded of the cut she had gotten from jumping over the fence. The kunoichi bent her arm to examine the injury on her forearm then sighed when it was just a scratch with some blood clots. The shower must've cleaned it out. That was good; at least she wouldn't have to worry about an infected cut or anything.

"Are you alright?"

The kunoichi jumped at Minato's voice, clearly didn't sense him approaching. She looked up and saw him standing beside her, his arm reaching out to place the steaming cup onto the table before her. Kushina lowered her own arm and then shook her head.

"It's fine..." She murmured, gingerly reaching out to touch the handle-less cup. Kushina instantly withdrew her finger. _Hot._

"..." Minato chuckled warily and pulled out the chair next to her, placing his own cup onto the table and then taking a seat. Without pausing, Minato took his cup and sipped the tea, sighing contently. "... I hope you don't mind... my parents only really liked tea with honey in it..." He forced a wary smile as he stared down at the tea, before raising the cup to take another sip. Kushina only shook her head at this, gingerly reaching out to try and take hold of the cup again. The temperature had dropped a bit so she drank the tea, feeling the honey soothe her throat.

They sat in silence for the time being, occasionally glancing at each other and sipping their drinks. Minato was thinking to himself, and strained to keep his sighs inaudible as he silently argued with himself. Kushina shivered when she began to picture the events that happened that night and started to sink lower into her chair, hands beginning to quiver and causing the tea to ripple.

"... Thanks, again..." She murmured after stifling another shiver that rolled down her spine. Minato's gaze flickered over to this, before he glimpsed down at his tea and sighed softly, placing it back on the table.

"It was nothing..." Minato mumbled. He raised his hand to rub the back of his neck. _... Just... tell her already..._ "I wanted to save you..." He murmured under his breath as he lowered his gaze. Kushina looked up at this, barely able to catch the words. Minato bit his lower lip for a moment.

"Because-!"

Kushina must've still been edgy, since she jumped when Minato raised his voice level. The jerking movement caused her to spill the drink onto the floor, making the kunoichi frown.

"Oh... crap... Sorry..." Kushina mumbled, shakily putting the cup on the table and lowering to the ground. Minato stiffened a bit when he realized he was coming close to actually _telling_ her, and shook his head, getting to his feet.

"I-I'll go get some napkins..." He murmured, quickly ducking into the kitchen.

Kushina frowned slightly as she turned her head to watch him dart out of the room. She sighed and turned her head back to look down at the stain the tea caused. _What did he say...? What was he _going_ to say, 'tebayo...?_

Minato leaned over the counter and warily hung his head, clenching his fist as his heart pounded painfully against his ribcage. His eyes were wide and he forced himself to inhale and exhale. _I almost told her...!_

"... Minato...?"

The blond's eyes widened further at the sound of his name, and he could feel his heart rate pick up even more speed. He quickly forced a nervous laugh then proceeded to 'try and find some napkins'.

"Aha ha... Gomen, Kushina-san... The truth is that I haven't actually been in this house for a long time..." Minato explained weakly. Kushina frowned slightly from where she stood a couple of paces behind him. She looked down at her hands and fiddled nervously with her fingers.

"... Back in the other room... What were you going to say?" Kushina managed to question slowly. Minato stiffened slightly. But he sighed and shook his head.

"It.. it was nothing..." He murmured softly. Minato returned his gaze back down to the counter and sighed inaudibly at his racing heart. Kushina's eyes flickered at the reply, disappointed when he only brushed off her question. _What's wrong with him?_

"... Look... it's okay... you don't have to worry about me anymore..." Kushina sighed heavily and rubbed the back of her neck. "You... can forget about me... I think I've been nothing but a burden on your shoulders... and with you losing your parents-"

"That's.. not true, Kushina..!" Minato interrupted. His hands gripped the edge of the counter again as his shoulders squared. The blond gritted his teeth for a moment, but forced himself to open his mouth. "It was... really, _really_ hard to forget about you during the time you were away..!"

"W... What?" Kushina's eyes were wide at his words, staring at the back of his tense shoulders. "Why...?"

"Because!" Minato shivered lightly and made no move to turn around. "Because... Because...!" Minato squeezed his eyes closed and his grip on the edge of the counter tightened further, to the point where his knuckles were beginning to turn white. "Over time... I came to realize that... Realize that... That I love you, Kushina!!" He blurted. Water droplets slipped past his eyes and pattered down onto the counter top.

Kushina could feel her entire body stiffen at the final words that Minato had blurted out. Unconsciously, she raised her hand to her chest, feeling her own heart ramming against her ribs. Slowly, the kunoichi took a couple of unbalanced steps forward. "Minato, I-"

"And.. I've loved you no matter what... Even if...! Even if your feelings aren't the same towards me.. but rather someone else..." Minato shivered weakly again and hung his head further, the tears continuing to fall and create tiny puddles on the painted counter. Kushina stiffened once more, but her right hand shot out to hold onto a part of the counter as well, balancing herself. But she slowly calmed down and reached forward with her other hand to gingerly place on his shoulder.

Minato stiffened beneath her hand, his eyes snapping open before he slowly lifted his head and turned to look back at her. He cringed when he saw how close Kushina was to him. The kunoichi gently pulled on his shoulder, making him turn around so that he faced her. Slowly, Kushina closed the gap between them and tiptoed slightly so she could wrap her arms around his neck.

Minato's bleary eyes were wide at the physical closeness, his arms holding onto the counter edge to balance both of them. His face was clearly red, even in the dim light that came from the living room.

"Kushi...na?"

The kunoichi shifted at her name, slowly moving, their cheeks brushing slightly, and tiptoed further to whisper.

"... I only loved one guy in my life..." Kushina whispered. Even as soft as her voice was, Minato could still hear the slight shakiness behind it. "You don't know how happy it makes me... to know that your feelings and mines are the same, dattebayo..."

"...!" Minato's blue eyes widened as the words finally sunk into his mind. He shifted to look down at her, but only saw the back of her red-haired head and felt her cheek brushing against his once more. Minato shivered, but slowly unfolded his fingers from around the counter edge, ignoring the pained feeling of blood rushing back into his hand. He wrapped the same arm around her, before the other arm eventually moved to snake around her waist as well.

Both of them tightened their arms around one another, not wanting to let go. Wanting to stay like this for as long as possible. Kushina felt slightly dizzy and carefully slid her eyes closed, tilting her head to bury her face in the curve of his warm neck. Minato moved his arm up from her waist to stroke the back of her head, feeling her smooth red hair beneath his fingers. He inhaled her scent and then tightened the arm that was still around her waist.

The two stayed like that for who knows how long.

After what seemed like hours to them, Kushina stirred, having nearly fallen asleep in his arms. She blinked and slowly loosened her arms from around his neck, leaning back slightly to look at him. Minato tilted his head to the side but then grinned lightly a second later. Kushina felt her cheeks color.

"What...?"

"Nothing..." Minato murmured, shifting to get up from leaning back against the counter. Slowly, his arms slid from around her waist. Kushina looked disappointed, but also lowered her arms from his neck and back down to her sides. Minato continued to grin softly, gently taking her hand into his and pulling her out of the kitchen.

"Come on..."

Kushina blinked slightly. But she returned the smile and nodded as she was pulled into the other room. The tea stain in the carpet was long forgotten, even as Minato pulled her past the dining table.

"Minato...?"

"You're tired, aren't you?" Minato questioned softly as he lead her back into the heated den. Kushina slowly nodded, suddenly stifling a yawn. Her shoulders suddenly dropped and her entire body felt tired, the several events from the night draining whatever energy she had left. Minato chuckled. He turned his gaze towards the large couch, and then returned his sight back to the kunoichi.

Kushina just flopped face down onto the couch suddenly, sinking into it for a bit as the air escaped the cushions. Minato smiled, but remained by her side, seeing that she wasn't letting go of his hand. He continued to stare down at the kunoichi, whom finally turned her onto the side to show the smirk that was crossing her face.

"Uh?" Minato was suddenly pulled down, landing on his shoulder at the edge of the cushions, surprised that he didn't fall on her or anything. Kushina had rolled onto her side while the blond was falling. She slowly released his hand and stared at him through half-closed eyes, still warily smirking as the drowsiness began to take over. Minato stared back at her as well, though his blue eyes were wide for a moment before he slowly calmed down, smiling back warmly.

Minato shifted to move closer, and they could clearly see how colored their cheeks were. They continued to smile at each other, or smirk in Kushina's case. Minato tore his gaze downwards for a moment, his arm moving to carefully take hold of her hand again. Kushina's drowsy eyes lit up for a few seconds, closing her fingers around his hand and moving their hands so that they rested on the couch between them.

Kushina could hear the rabid beat of his heart, and she was wondering if he could hear how fast hers was going as well. Though the thought soon faded as she stifled another yawn and closed her eyes, the smirk eventually fading down to a smile.

Minato only continued to stare at her with his hand still clasping hers lightly. He still couldn't stop himself from smiling, before he closed his eyes for a moment to exhale a near-inaudible sigh. _All that moping for nothing, eh?... _The blond chuckled softly to himself as another thought popped into his head, and then opened his eyes.

"What's so funny, 'tebayo...?" Kushina grumbled without opening own eyes. Minato shifted in response, moving his right arm so that he could tuck it beneath his head as a makeshift pillow.

"... Just thinking how much of an idiot I was for not noticing..." He murmured softly, but just loudly enough so Kushina could hear over the light hum coming from the heater. "For not noticing that.. you liked me back..." He could feel the blush on his cheeks deepen. "... And for not noticing when you started calling me by my name..."

Kushina stirred slightly and then slowly opened her eyes; the first things spotted were the blue eyes that stared back at her. She blushed at the physical closeness, but closed her eyes and snuggled back into the comfortable cushion beneath her head. Minato kept smiling, but saw her lips move slightly and tilted his head forward, foreheads and bangs brushing, to listen.

"... blondy..."

Minato shifted a bit at the word, but closed his eyes and rested his bang-covered forehead against hers. The smile never left, even as he slowly drifted off to sleep himself.

_I love you..._

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **Gyehhh. Dx It took so much longer to type out this chapter than I thought! Why, writer's block fairy?! _Wai?! _Dx  
But, I've also been rather busy... :c Me being sick... and also trying to fix up the previous chapters due to the site's code changing or whatever... So now all the little dashes that separated the parts are _gone_... All of 'em disappeared, so now I have to replace them with those gray lines that the site provides. :c Kinda pissed me off for a while...

Aside from that, I really, really, _really_ have to thank Sade'-san (or Mistress of Serenity, her user name on this site) for helping me out with the fluffiness of this chapter! D: I seriously couldn't have done much without her help! Arigatou, ne, Sade'-san!! And thanks to everyone else who's reviewed and supported this fic! ;-;  
_And_-! I took a few of your guys' suggestion and got myself a beta reader.. If any of you went back to the first couple of chapters, you probably would've seen that already at the bottom of the authoress' notes I have here... But yeh..! **Shinsei Kuro** -danna. Dx Arigatou, ne...!


	17. If Everyone Cared

**Chapter XVII: If Everyone Cared**

It had snowed over night. A thin layer of white covered the rooftops and streets of Konohagakure, creating a frigid air in the village. Any leaves or foliage that was there the previous day were dead and covered with snow, consumed by the cold temperature and unable to survive. For a couple of hours after dawn break, the village was still, as if the villagers were taking in the rare sight of snow. Finally, they got to work to start clearing the streets and some of the roofs. The younger children went out to throw snowballs at each other, forgetting about the war that was currently going on between Konoha and Iwa.

In a house nestled in the hidden village, two ninja were also able to forget the war, if for a little while.

"I found a couple extra, Kushina!!" Minato called over his shoulder, before turning his head to look back at the piles of boxes overhead. He gingerly took the sides and quickly pulled one of the cardboard boxes out, hoping that the ones on top would just fall onto the rest on the bottom.

They didn't.

Instead the blond got buried by the remaining boxes from the top, a couple hitting his head and causing him to crumple to the ground, though he managed to shield himself from the rest of the falling items by using the box he was currently holding as a shield. Minato opened his eyes and sighed from where he sat on the floor, surrounded by boxes as well as old clothing that spilled to the floor. A snort from the doorway caused him to look up.

"You could've moved out of the way, y'know..." Kushina murmured as she raised a brow, leaning against the doorway, unable to stop herself from smirking or snickering at the sight

Minato laughed nervously for a bit, but then lowered the small box he had on his lap and easily tore at the old tape that held it shut. Kushina snorted softly and trailed over to loom over his shoulder, growling inaudibly to herself as she brushed her hair back behind her ear.

The blond pulled out a couple of folded scarves and tilted his head as he examined the designs stitched into them. He tilted his head backwards to look up at the kunoichi, feeling his cheeks color against the cool air when their eyes met. Kushina blinked but smiled back awkwardly at him

"Here... Look through these.." Minato murmured as he shifted the box, holding it by the edges as he held it over his head. Kushina nodded and took the box, trailing over to the large bed and gingerly sitting on the edge of it. Minato glimpsed back at her, as if about to say something against her sitting on his parents' old bed. Though the Jounin decided against it and allowed her to sit there, seeing no harm in doing so. Minato then proceeded to clean up the boxes he had spilt over the floor.

Kushina glimpsed at him for a moment and then smiled softly. She turned her head to look back at the box, pulling out a few of the scarves and unfolding them to see how long they were. Most of them were rather short, and Kushina had to admit that their lengths weren't all that appealing to her. So she continued digging through the boxes and eventually laid out a few scarves that were pretty long. The kunoichi got up from the bed and stared down at the four scarves she had selected, her hand at her chin before she unconsciously tucked the lock of hair behind her ear once more.

"Hey... can I keep a few of these?" The kunoichi asked over her shoulder. Minato had already cleaned up the spilled clothing, and were stacking the boxes back into the narrow closet. He was standing on his tiptoes, trying to get the last box at the top.

"Sure.. Not like I'm going to use fifteen scarves by myself..." Minato paused for a moment and sighed softly to himself, shaking his head. _I'll go visit the Memorial Stone later... _He thought, before he jumped slightly and managed to get the last box into the closet.

Kushina nodded at the reply and returned her gaze down to all folded materials. _I'll get a couple for Daylian-nii..._ The kunoichi stared at a dark-colored scarf for several seconds, then her eyes instantly widened.

"Oh shit!!"

"What is it?!" Minato had jumped when the kunoichi first cried out, instantly spinning around to look at the kunoichi. Confusion, concern, and surprise were evident in his blue eyes. Kushina was lightly hitting herself with her fists.

"Crap... I never told Daylian I'd stay overnight here... He's probably dead worried about me, dattebayo!" Kushina groaned and continued to hit herself. "I'm so stupid!"

Minato slowly calmed when he heard this, but raised one hand to scratch his blond-haired head. "Oops..."

Kushina hit herself in the head a few more times, before she picked up a red scarf with white zigzags, unfolding it and wrapping it around her neck hastily. Despite the sudden rush, she had to admit that the wool clothing matched her. The kunoichi hit herself again over the head, making Minato blink in surprise.

"Kushina...?"

"Sorry... I should get back and apologize to nii-san..." Kushina muttered as she collected the other three scarves into her arms. Minato looked slightly disappointed, but nodded as he reached back to slide the closet door shut.

"Alright... Do you know the way there or...?" Minato questioned. Though when he turned his head to look back at the kunoichi, she had already left the room. The blond blinked once more, but then chuckled under his breath and moved to trail out into the hall. He paused at the doorway and looked back at the vacant room that had once belonged to his parents, before he closed the door and walked down the hall, passing the closed door to his room and darting down the stairs. He jumped the last few steps and placed a hand on the wall to steady himself.

Kushina was standing by the dining table, quickly downing some tea that Minato made again earlier in the morning. The blond Jounin took the chance to walk to the couch, picking up the vest he had dumped there the previous night. He also picked up his hitai-ate, but paused, considering that the metal plate would only make him cold. He shook his head and just tucked the headband into his pocket, and then joined Kushina at the front door.

"You gonna be fine just wearing that...?" The kunoichi asked, lowering to unroll the bottom of her pants so that they covered her ankles. Minato tilted his head to the side slightly in response.

"We'll see."

"..." Kushina quirked a brow in his direction, but shrugged and opened the door.

Minato leaned back slightly as the cold air outside rolled in, clearly underestimating how low the temperature was. He laughed nervously and forced himself to step out after Kushina, suppressing a shiver when he set foot on the snow.

"... Aha ha... It's.. a lot colder than I thought it would be..." Minato continued to laugh in a nervous manner, closing the door behind him and following Kushina into the street. Kushina looked back at him, and then shifted to wrap her scarf more tightly around her neck.

"Doesn't snow much here, does it, dattebayo?" The kunoichi asked. Minato shook his head and continued to walk along side her down the streets.

"No, it doesn't... Maybe every couple of years it does..." Minato responded.

"Oh." Kushina tilted her head upwards to look up at the gray sky, and to see her visible breath disappear into the air. Her eyes widened for a moment when she felt Minato brush against her arm, turning her head to look over at him. Minato was slouching slightly with his arms folded, as if trying to retain warmth. After a while, the blond raised his hands and cupped them around his mouth to exhale warm air into them.

"... You're really not use to the cold, are you?" Kushina murmured.

"No, not really..." Minato shook his head again, his voice muffled by his hands. "You're lucky... you adapt easily..."

Kushina snorted at this and returned her gaze back to the street, examining them for a moment before they slid back over to Minato. She sniffed a bit and slowly raised her hand. Minato blinked when he felt her shift besides him and his gaze flickered to her, his hands moving away from his mouth slightly. When he did that, the kunoichi awkwardly took his hand into hers and lowered them back down to their sides. Minato stared at her with his cheeks visibly red, but smiled shyly and turned his blue eyes back to the front, sliding his other hand into his pocket. Kushina glimpsed over at him and instantly looked away, her fingers tightening around his hand. Her own blush deepened when she felt the blonde's own fingers tighten around hers, not wanting to let go.

They continued to walk hand in hand, and after a while Kushina noticed that their pace had slowed. Alot. Inwardly, she groaned and took a glimpse around, though she calmed when she recognized a few of the stores despite being covered in a thin layer of snow. She glanced over at Minato and blushed slightly when their gazes met.

Flustered, Kushina tucked her hair behind her ear again and looked away. Minato blinked at this, but was suddenly reminded of something. Slowly, he released her hand. Kushina shifted then turned to look at him, disappointment visible as she let go as well.

"Minato?" Kushina murmured softly. Her hair swept back over her left eye, and she raised her hand to brush it out of her face again. Minato stopped her by carefully taking hold of her wrist, his other hand moving to brush the lock of hair back. There was an audible _click_, and Kushina blinked.

The blond carefully pulled his hand away from her head, tilting his head to the side before he grinned sheepishly. Kushina blinked once more in confusion and then raised her hand to the side of her head, feeling the pin that held her hair out of her eye.

"I.. bought that a little while ago... since you had to keep brushing your hair back like that..." Minato explained a sheepish tone to match his shy expression. "I kept forgetting about it.. until now..."

Kushina was tilting her head to the side, as if testing to see if her hair would fall back over her eye. She felt some of the ends of her hair brush against her neck, but it didn't fall over her face. The kunoichi looked up at him and then grinned with her cheeks coloring slightly.

"Thanks... I was about ready to cut that piece of hair, 'tebayo..."

Minato could feel his heart ram into his chest suddenly, so he rubbed his nose flustered. "E-etou... you're welcome.. I'm glad you like it..."

Kushina was still grinning lightly, even as she turned to glance back around at the stores.

"Come on... the apartments aren't too far from now.." She murmured as she spun around playfully a few times down the snow-covered street. Minato blinked as he shifted to slowly follow.

"So you know the rest of the way, then...?"

"...? Yeah, I do..." Kushina spun on her heels to face him again.

Then she slipped.

Kushina grumbled. She shook her head a couple of times and then tried to brush off the fact that she fell. The kunoichi wiped the snow from her arms and the scarves, shivering lightly before she looked up. Minato was already holding out his hand to her, an amused grin spread across his red-tinted face. The kunoichi's own blush deepened in embarrassment, but she reached forward and took hold of his hand, which was notably cold.

Minato pulled her off the snowy ground and onto her feet with little effort, still grinning as he kept his fingers wrapped around her hand. Kushina only continued to grumble as if flustered, brushing the snow off using her other hand.

"I'm gonna get you some gloves..." She continued to grumble under her breath, though Minato chuckled when he managed to catch the sentence.

"Aha ha... You don't have to, Kushina..." He murmured. Minato smiled lightly, then suddenly pulled on the hand he was holding. Kushina blinked as she felt herself being pulled forward, feeling Minato's other arm snake around her to hold her against him.

"... I'm going to go visit my parents..." Minato carefully released her hand to awkwardly put his other arm around waist. "You know the rest of the way, right?"

"..." Kushina nodded in silence, slightly disappointed at this. Still, the kunoichi shifted to rest her head against the blond's shoulder, moving to wrap her free arm around him. "Fine, 'tebayo..."

Minato caught the disappointed tone, but he sighed softly and tilted his head so that his cheek brushed the top of her head. "I'm sorry... I'll see you later, then...? No, wait."

"...?" Kushina turned to look up at him, leaning back slightly to do so. "What?"

"Tomorrow night... if we don't get called out of the village... Since it's snowing this year, I want to show you something..." Minato smiled down at her. Kushina tilted her head to the side in curiosity, but slowly moved back and slid from his arms.

"Okay... Where, then?"

"Just meet me at the memorial stone... since you know where it is." Minato lowered his arms when she moved back, still feeling warm from the embrace as well as the blood that rushed up to his cheeks. Kushina slowly nodded, but then she winced and growled under her breath.

"Nii-san...!" She hissed. The kunoichi gave a light wave before she spun around, adjusted the folded scarves she was holding and then started running down the street. "Tomorrow night, then, 'tebayo!!" She called over her shoulder. Minato's smile turned into a grin as he nodded, raising his hand to return the wave.

The blond watched her disappear down the snow-covered road, and then spun around, shoving his hands in his pockets when he felt the cold air beginning to sting his skin. He kept smiling as he moved forward in the direction of the grounds where the Memorial Stone lay.

* * *

"Do you have _any_ idea what kind of _hell_ you put me through last night?! I mean geez, you go running off after another blond chick-- just how many blonds are there in this village? Anyway, you go running off after the other girl tells you something and leave me wondering 'okay, what the hell'... So I wait and I wait, and your freaking ramen is just _sitting there_!! I mean it was calling me! So I eat it to show you a lesson and then wait some more. Just... _where were you_?!"

Kushina wiped some of the spit off her face with disgust, leaning back slightly as Daylian towered over her with a stern expression.

"I'm glad that wasn't one of your five-minute rants, dattebayo..." The kunoichi muttered as she avoided her brother-by-law's gaze, shifting to move around him and approach the stairs of the apartment. She could hear Daylian growl and turn to follow.

"_Well_?! Where were you last night?!" Daylian demanded again as he stormed up the stairs after her. Kushina rolled her eyes slightly as she approached the door, opening it and entering. Her face was deep red as she recalled the events of the previous night, and she nervously fiddled with the folded scarves in her arm.

"And another thing!" Daylian growled, pulling the door shut behind him. He took a moment to pause and shake himself, allowing the snow that gathered atop his head and shoulders fall to the floor. "You didn't go and steal the scarves, did you?!"

"Just get off my case, would you?!"

Daylian halted and quickly raised one hand to catch the dark material thrown at him. He paused once more and examined it, unrolling the dark-navy blue scarf and watching it hang in the air, suspended only by his hand holding it at the end. "..."

"No, I didn't steal them..." Kushina growled as she placed the other two onto the bed. The kunoichi adjusted the long red-and-white scarf that adorned her own neck, then turned to grab a cup of ramen from one of the cabinets. "Minato let me keep them..."

"Minato...? ... Oh, 'blondy'..." Daylian had a deadpan expression on as he turned to look at her. On a whim, he sniffed the scarf a couple of times and then shrugged. He shook his head a couple of more times to get rid of any remaining flecks of snow in his black hair, and then wrapped the long scarf around his neck.

"That still doesn't explain much... Wait.. you were at Minato's house?" Daylian quirked a brow as he looked at her. Kushina glimpsed back at him and then nervously fidgeted while she stuck the half-ready cup ramen into the microwave.

"Yeahhh..." Kushina grumbled, using one of the old ramen cups and filling it up to water her flowers. She tried to shift her attention away from the silence that now hung in the air, looking down to water the red carnation that was slowly blooming. The kunoichi tilted her head and water the plant, carefully flicking some of the water onto the leaves of the plant as well as the buds.

"... Now, 'Shina..." Daylian mumbled as he scratched his head, approaching her. "I.. think you and I both know that you're.. too young to be... screwin' around with-"

"What?!" Kushina nearly dropped the Styrofoam cup as she yelled. Clearly flustered, the kunoichi spun around to slap him, but Daylian quickly backed up a few paces to distance himself from her.

"I.. I.. Wh-what the hell, Da-nii!!" Kushina growled through her teeth, her fists clenching as she tried to keep herself from turning red even further, if it was possible. Daylian waved his hands in his defense, backing up a few more paces just to be safe.

"Then what were you doing? You don't tell me anything, so that's why I jumped to the conclusion-"

"But I wouldn't go and-!" Kushina buried her face in her hands and spun around on her heels, inwardly screaming at the older nin. She kept her back turned to him, her face still hidden by her hands as she slowly calmed down. Her cheeks were beginning to feel sore from the blood. _Stupid nii-san...! We weren't...!!_

Kushina growled and spun around, storming to the bathroom and slamming the door shut loudly. She leaned against the door and shook her head rapidly, trying to discard images that were beginning to seep into her mind.

"You know I jump to conclusions, 'Shina..." Daylian's voice was audible on the other side of the door and walls. Kushina growled a bit, but got up and trailed to the mirror, blinking at how red her face was. She grumbled under her breath and rubbed her sore cheeks.

"... Shut up, nii-san... I'll tell you if you stop.. thinking of stuff like that..." She growled. "Pervert..." The kunoichi added under her breath.

"I heard that!"

Kushina rolled her eyes and just sighed heavily. She slowly lowered to sit on the bathroom floor and lean back against the bathtub. She tilted her head backwards and stared up blankly at the ceiling, wondering how much she should tell Daylian about the previous night. The kunoichi idly played with the end of her new scarf as she quickly relayed the events, quickly skipping the parts with the Uchiha. Kushina started to blush again at the memories and began squirming slightly from the 'butterflies in her stomach'.

"Hey?" A few knocks came from outside the bathroom door. "You didn't disappear on me, did you? Because the door's locked and I don't want to have to break in or anything just to use the bathroom..."

Kushina rolled her eyes when she was snapped out of her thoughts. Sighing, she pushed herself to her feet and trailed to the door. It unlocked when she turned the knob, and she pulled it open, trailing past Daylian and into the room. The older teenager turned to follow.

"..."

"..."

Daylian frowned at the silence. He sighed and sat down on the floor when Kushina flopped onto the bed. The silence dragged on, and eventually Daylian lay down on his back to stare blankly at the ceiling. Kushina just remained where she landed on the bed, unmoving as she continued to try and find out how to start. Several upon several minutes passed, and Kushina finally squirmed and clutched the bed sheets. Daylian tilted his head to glimpse at her. "...?"

"Okay... so this is how it went, dattebayo..." As Kushina began relaying the events, the ramen cup in the microwave was forgotten.

* * *

A heavy sigh rolled off his tongue, his breath visible in the cold air before the large cloud of warmth disappeared from existence, overwhelmed by the frost. The layer of snow was thin, but there were still small traces of his footsteps that were left behind. They would be covered up eventually; snow was beginning to fall slowly from the gray skies. The village was quiet and still. That's how it always was whenever it would snow in Konoha. The villagers would always stay indoors for the first few days, and then go out once they adapted to the temperature drop.

He paused and shifted the wooden incense holder, glancing down at the set for several seconds before he shrugged. The sound of the snow crunching beneath his feet was audible and broken through the silence.

The trees eventually opened up into the large clearing of the training grounds. Two of the three stumps had been replaced so that new ones stood in their place, the top already covered with a small layer of white. The stream's current was slow moving, threatening to be frozen from the dropping temperature.

His gaze slid away from the scenery and onto another one.

Jiraiya blinked when he saw a familiar student of his sitting before the memorial stone. The Gama Sennin shook his head and moved forward through the grounds, tucking the small incense set beneath his arm and then reaching out with the other to brush off some of the snow that had gathered atop the blond's head.

"You weren't sitting here all day, were you?" Jiraiya murmured.

Minato shifted and tilted his head to look up at his sensei, before he warily smiled and shook his head no. The blond Jounin slowly got to his feet, wiping the snow from the jacket he was wearing over the navy underclothing. As Minato did this, Jiraiya lowered onto his knee to place the wooden incense holder on the ground in front of the memorial stone. He set one of the thin sticks on and then quickly drew a small flame, leaning back as smoke slowly started to wisp from the end of the incense.

Minato tilted his head to the side at this, blue eyes just watching with some curiosity. "...?"

Jiraiya exhaled a soft sigh, his breath visible again for a moment, before he placed his other knee on the ground. He closed his eyes and carefully inhaled the light scent the incense was giving off then placing his hands together carefully. Minato continued to watch in silence, and then he placed his hands in his pockets to keep them warm, closing his eyes.

The two remained like this for at least a minute, before Minato opened his eyes when he felt Jiraiya move against the stiff air.

"A few old friends I knew got killed..." Jiraiya explained as his eyes stared unblinkingly at a couple of names engraved onto the stone. Minato dipped his head in a nod. He slowly slid his gaze over to the stone tablet and flickered his eyes across the names of his parents.

Minato fidgeted for a moment, but slowly pulled his hands from his pockets to clasp them together similar to how Jiraiya did. He dipped his head once more and closed his eyes, falling silent. Jiraiya turned his head to watch his former student.

The incense stick was half gone by the time Minato opened his eyes again. The blond exhaled warm air into his hands and rubbed them together, before deciding to slip them back into the pockets of his jacket.

"So you went back to your parents' house, then?" Jiraiya questioned once he noticed Minato's eyes opening. The blond Jounin nodded.

"Yeah... Sorry for not telling you, sensei..."

Jiraiya shook his head and returned his eyes back over to the Memorial Stone. He ran his gaze over the more recent names and sighed softly. "It's alright... your stuff is still at my place, so come get them, alright?"

"... Can it wait until tomorrow, sensei?" Minato asked as he turned to look down at his kneeling sensei. Jiraiya raised a brow and looked up.

"Hm? Why, you busy tonight?" Jiraiya returned a question with his brow still quirked. Minato smiled shyly and nodded, before he started grinning with his cheeks turning red.

"Hehe... I have a date tonight..."

"Ah..." Jiraiya blinked and then did a double-take. He stared up at his former student with his mouth opened, black eyes curious. "Wha...? With who?"

"With Kushina..." Minato continued to grin at this, clearly embarrassed when Jiraiya did the double-take. Jiraiya blinked once more and then tilted his head to the side.

"Kushina...? Since when? How?"

"Yesterday..." Minato's blush deepened slightly. "... I.. just told her how I felt... And.. it turns out that she liked me back, sensei..."

"..." Jiraiya chuckled and shook his head. "That's great to hear, 'Nato..." He continued to chuckle, before it slowly died out and his expression turned into a slight deadpan. "... Wait.. so then you were moping around for nothing then?" He questioned with his brow quirking once more.

Minato blinked and laughed nervously. "Ahaaa... It seems so, sensei... Looking back.. I should've just told her..."

"But you didn't listen..." Jiraiya sighed, shaking his head from side to side warily. "That's a bit of your life you won't be getting back." He snorted.

"Sensei..."

"You know I'm joking, Minato..." Jiraiya rolled his eyes and then looked back down at the wooden incense holder. The incense stick itself had finished burning, the final wisps of aromatic smoke floating a few inches into the air before vanishing into the cold air. The Gama Sennin took what was left of the incense and flicked it into the snow, before picking up the wooden holder and getting to his feet. He shook the snow from his white hair and turned his head downwards to Minato.

"Hehe... Little 'Nato is still growin' up.." Jiraiya grinned lightly as chuckled. "Though I'm still waiting for the day when we can go drinking together..."

Minato blinked in response to this. But he soon carried on with his usual nervous laugh. "Haa... That'll be the day, sensei... Four years from now." He added bluntly. Jiraiya sighed and turned around at this.

"Damn drinking age..." Jiraiya muttered under his breath, but shook his head and sighed. "Screw it, I'm taking you drinking in two or three years."

"Uh..." Minato looked a bit dumbfounded at this, and was about to open his mouth to protest. Jiraiya only raised his hand over his shoulder to wave.

"Alright? It's a deal."

"But I didn't-"

"Have fun on your date, 'Nato." Jiraiya turned his head to grin over his shoulder. He shifted to walk away, but stopped after taking a couple of steps forward. "... And I don't mean to burst your bubble or anythin'..." The Sennin sighed softly. "But don't get too infatuated, a'ight? We're still in a war with Iwa... blowing into a full-scale one. I'm happy for you, Minato, but also focus on the situation going on outside the village walls."

Minato stared at his sensei's back for several seconds, his eyes wide for a bit. _I almost forgot...!_ He mentally hit himself. Then he nodded. "Alright, sensei... I'll do whatever I can to help out in the war..."

"'Atta boy..." Jiraiya's grin formed once more as he raised his hand to wave a second time. "Have fun, and see ya."

The Gama Sennin disappeared in a small wisp of wind, some snow being kicked up from the Shunshin. Minato remained where he was, staring at the spot where his teacher once stood, before smiling softly to himself. He turned his head to look over at the sky, and waited for the sun to set behind the thick gray clouds.

* * *

"_Please_, Daylian-nii-san?" Kushina begged a third time. Her gloved hands were clasped together in a begging pose, her head tilted to look up at him with pleading eyes.

Daylian was wearing a crooked frown as he leaned back against the counter, trying his best to have his purple eyes look away from the kunoichi's. He held onto the edge of the counter, drumming his fingers lightly as he leaned back away from his sister-by-law.

"Err... It's not that hard to just walk there..." Daylian mumbled in response to the plea. He looked down when he felt Kushina tug on the sleeve of his coat.

"But..."

"..." Daylian's crooked frown returned as he tried to avoid her eyes again.

"It's only to the training grounds, nii-san..." Kushina grumbled as she gave another small tug on his sleeve. Daylian sighed.

"If you're going out on dates, then you should be grown-up enough to walk yourself to the training grounds, 'Shina." He muttered in response. Kushina tried to look hopefully again, but her expression dropped when she heard his reply. She slowly let go of his sleeve and sighed, loping over to the door and opening it. The cold air swept in as she peered outside, examining how dark it was. She shuddered from both the cold and the thought of the approaching night. Kushina closed the door and tightened the red-and-white scarf that she now favored, looking back at Daylian with the same pleading expression.

Daylian sighed at this. "What's so wrong about walking around at night, huh?"

"... I'm scared, datte'sa..." Kushina admitted under her breath. She suppressed another shiver. Daylian only stared at her for several seconds, his eyes widening for a moment as he remembered what she had told him. He frowned darkly and turned his head to spit in the sink, before moving across the room to swipe the key off the table.

The black-haired nin buttoned up his coat and kicked up the scarf that was given to him, lazily swinging it around his neck before he pushed Kushina towards the door again.

"You have every right to be paranoid, 'Shina..." Daylian murmured after pushing her out the door and locking it shut behind them. Kushina only nodded and fiddled with the end of her white jacket, quietly waiting for him before she looked up. Daylian shook his head with a sigh and placed his hand on Kushina's shoulder to steer her down the snow-covered stairs.

"Minato better walk you back here..." He muttered. "Even if he's a nice guy, I'm not afraid to punch him."

"Nii-san.." Kushina sighed softly at this.

She was suddenly excited, now knowing that Daylian would protect her along the way. Kushina grinned as she spun around a few times, unable to contain how happy she was now that she and Minato were together. The kunoichi stopped when she spun around once more; catching the look Daylian was giving her. A brow was quirked, and three words were readable in his violet eyes: What the heck.

Kushina straightened and then sniffed a few times, looking around innocently and then turning in the direction of the streets. Daylian rolled his eyes slightly and moved forward to join up with her, his hands his pockets and his scarf fixed so that it hid the lower half of his face. The two decided to regard the childish spins that Kushina was doing, and walked down the snow-layered street in silence. Though Kushina kept fidgeting and picking up the pace every now and then, sensing night time drawing near.

The kunoichi finally breathed a sigh of relief when she saw the forest come to view. She turned her head to look over at Daylian, who had stopped a few paces back.

"... Get back before midnight; otherwise I'll sniff you two down." Daylian snorted after his warning and then spun around on his heels. Kushina frowned slightly at this, but returned the snort and nodded.

"Yeah, yeah..." She grumbled.

Daylian chuckled under his breath and was about to move forward to leave, when he suddenly felt his arms pinned to his sides and warmth on his back. Kushina childishly grinned as she hugged him from behind.

"Arigatou, Daylian-nii, 'tebayo..."

"... Hah... You're welcome.. Now get going, would you? I'm sure Minato's been waitin'." Daylian murmured, grinning lightly from behind his dark-colored scarf. Kushina nodded, releasing her brother to spin around and run up the path.

"See you later, nii-san!!" Kushina called loudly enough so that he could hear, before running up the path with the sudden energy she had from before. She couldn't stop herself from grinning, not that she didn't want to anyway. The red-haired kunoichi's breaths were more visible in the air thanks to the approaching nightfall. Kushina nearly lost her footing as she jumped on the fence, yelping a bit before glaring over her shoulder and at the snow. But she snorted and jumped down, making sure her scarf didn't get hooked onto the fence. Her pace slowed down by this point as she saw the half-buried stumps.

"Minato...?"

"Over here, Kushina..." Minato looked up when his name was spoken, smiling over his shoulder from where he was crouching besides the stream. Kushina felt those annoying butterflies in her stomach, but grinned at the sight of him and moved forward to stand besides him. Minato remained crouching, reaching out with one hand to touch the thin layer of ice that had frozen the stream water. His finger broke through the weak ice slab, withdrawing when he felt the steadily-freezing water splash his hand.

"That was really smart..." Kushina snorted softly. Minato laughed nervously as he wiped the icy water off his hand and stuffed it in his jacket pocket.

"Haha... No, I suppose it wasn't, was it?" Minato murmured as he got up, still trying to warm his hand. He finally got to his feet; glancing down at the frozen ice piece and watching it flow down sluggishly with the slowing current. He finally turned to look back at Kushina with a grin on his face.

"Shall we go, then?" He questioned as he pulled his other hand out of his pocket to offer to her. Kushina blinked but continued to grin as she reached out to take the offered hand. Minato's smile only widened at this, ignoring the fact that his heart was pounding painfully against his chest. Gently tightening his grip, Minato pulled her back in the direction of the village.

"Come on, we still have some time.."

Kushina looked confused a bit as she followed, moving to walk along besides him with their arms nearly touching. "What're you gonna show me, dattebayo?"

"You'll see." Minato beamed. Kushina grumbled when she got no reply to satisfy her curiosity. She looked down at their clasped hands and then blushed slightly, turning her head to gaze at him. Even in the fading daylight, she could see that his own cheeks were red was well, and that he couldn't stop smiling with his blue eyes locked forward on the path ahead of them. Kushina found herself smiling at his expression.

The two walked down the streets hand-in-hand with a semi-awkward silence between them. They occasionally exchanged glances with each other and their blushes would deepen before they looked away in embarrassment. Minato was just thinking silently to himself, while Kushina inwardly wondered where the blond was taking her. The kunoichi squinted against the darkness to try and see ahead for any clues as to where they were going, but Minato only continued to lead her deeper into the village. At one point, Kushina started frowning uncomfortably.

... _I have a feeling something's going to happen, 'tebayo..._

Her senses hit the nail on the head when an excited squeal pitched the still night air.

"_Oh my god_, _oh my _god!! Kushina-channn!!"

"Urk!" Kushina stiffened and quickly released Minato's hand. At that instant, she almost got knocked off her feet by the familiar Yamanaka. Sae was squealing happily as she rocked from side to side with her arms tight around Kushina, a wide grin across her face.

"I knew it I knew it I knew it!! You two were holding hands a moment ago, weren't you?! Don't deny it, Kushina-chan!!" Sae couldn't stop herself from giggling like crazy. Kushina blushed deeply from the embarrassment, feeling the gazes of some night-dwellers locked on them as well as Minato's own eyes. The blond was blinking, clearly dumbfounded at the sudden sight of the Yamanaka, but was also red from what Sae had demanded.

"I-Inosae-san.."

"Namikaze-kun." Sae greeted back, still wearing the happy smile with her arms around the other kunoichi. "It's been so long.. I'm sorry to hear about your parents, by the way..." Her smile disappeared momentarily at the mention of the two deaths, but it soon flashed back into view. She finally released Kushina, but was jumping slightly as if unable to bottle up her excitement.

"Ooh you two are _so_ cute!!" Sae did her best to try and suppress another squeal, covering her mouth with some mitten-covered hands. Kushina was burying her face in her hands out of pure embarrassment while Minato awkwardly smiled and laughed nervously.

"Uhh... thank you, Inosae-san?"

Sae tsk'd a few times. "You know better than to address me as Sae, Namikaze-kun." She wagged her right hand, seeing that she couldn't wag her fingers individually while wearing her mittens. But she giggled again and took Kushina's wrist as well as Minato's, making the two hold hands again. Sae then pushed them so that they were standing against one another.

"Well I can't disturb your date now, can I? Though I probably already did.. but I couldn't help myself!" Sae admitted with a dramatic sigh. In a hyper manner, she raised her hands so that the two tilted their heads sideways towards each other, stepping back and squealing like some fan girl at the sight.

"Aww!!" She spun around in the snow and waved, still giggling and smiling like crazy. "Have fun, Kushina-chan, Namikaze-kun!!"

Kushina slapped her face with her free hand once the hyper Yamanaka skipped off, mostly to hide her reddened cheeks. Minato still looked dumbfounded as he stared at where Sae disappeared off to, trying to avoid some of the odd looks a couple of by passers were giving them.

"... That was... entertaining?" Minato turned his head to look over at the kunoichi. His cheeks were beginning to grow painful from the blood that stayed in his cheeks. Kushina held her hand over her face for a while longer, before slowly lowering it back down to her side, trying to avoid Minato's gaze.

"Let's go..." She grumbled. Minato stared at her blankly for a couple of seconds before he nodded with a light smile, turning them around to head back in the direction they were originally facing. Kushina was about to move forward to walk after him, but instead felt his hand go from her hand to her waist, and no longer felt the snow-covered ground beneath her feet. The kunoichi was forced to close her eyes against the wind. She opened them once the air felt still again and blinked in surprise.

Minato grinned from where he was still holding her by the waist, his eyes staring out at the sight below them as well. The snow was falling steadily with the darkening night, creating a thin gray haze-like air further out in the sky. Below them the lights from the village were blurry from the haze the low temperature and snow was creating, scattered as far as the eye could see before the distance and the snow drowned out the light specks.

Kushina stared out in awe, her mouth opened slightly as she tried to move forward. Though Minato held her securely in place.

"Not a good idea... It's at least a hundred feet drop..."

The kunoichi's eyes widened as she turned to look over at him. "Hundred...? Where are we?"

"The top of the Stone Faces..." Minato replied in a casual tone, smiling with a light look behind it. "On Shodaime Hokage-sama's head, to be more precise..."

"Holy..." Kushina looked back out at the village once more, trying not to breathe too much so that the visible exhales would block out the view. She blinked and exhaled once more, only noticing how much of her breath could be seen. She shivered lightly; in response Minato tightened his arms around her waist.

"I'm cold too..." He admitted warily. Kushina rolled her eyes slightly. She raised her arm and then took the ends of her scarf, flicking them over so that they lazily landed on Minato's shoulders.

"Then you should've dressed more warmly, blondy..." The kunoichi grumbled without taking her gaze off the light-speckled village below. Minato blinked at this but he chuckled and tilted his head forward to rest his cheek on her head. Kushina leaned back slightly against him as the two continued to stare out at the firefly-like lights.

"... Sorry that it's not really anything exciting. I'm.. still kinda new at these kind of things." Minato murmured after a while. Kushina shifted and tilted her head back as far as she could to rest it against the blond's shoulder, eyes looking up at him. Minato's own eyes trailed down to look back at her, his cheeks turning warm when their eyes met.

"S'alright... Besides, I'm fine.. just being with you..." Kushina avoided his gaze by turning her head to bury her face in the side of his neck, feeling warm against it. Minato shifted but held still after a moment, smiling softly. He closed his eyes for a moment and then continued to stare out at the village with his arms still around the kunoichi's waist. Despite the happiness that was swirling madly in his chest, Minato couldn't help but think of what Jiraiya had said earlier that afternoon.

_"We're still in a war with Iwa... blowing into a full-scale one. I'm happy for you, Minato, but also focus on the situation going on outside the village walls."_

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **... The way the fic is going... It's going to be Christmas soon... xD; _Way_ out of season to the real world, man... Haha... It's gonna be funny, typing a Christmas seasoned chapter in spring.. xD Lawl...

Oh, oh... Maa, I was doing some calculations since it's been nagging at me for some time now. Fugaku should be about three years older than Minato... four if you guys want to be on the safe side... Ore wa aho desu... u.u' 'I am an idiot'. Maa... Sorry about that, everyone... Math was never my strong point. x.x'

... This is totally random, but I have a feeling some of you are pronouncing her name a bit off. Sae's name isn't really pronounced like Sai's from Shippuu. Hers is like... Sa-ehh. You don't say the name too fast like you naturally do for Sai's... o.o Just thought I'd clarify that.. xD'


	18. Hero Heroine

****

Chapter XVIII: Hero-Heroine

Snow continued to fall and drape Konohagakure in white layers. The skies remained cloudy and the air laden with the snowflakes fluttering down. More and more snow built up on the ground, and eventually the D-rank missions were beginning to pile up on the Genin as well as the occasional Chuunin. Everyone was beginning to grow tense due to the halted attacks from the Iwagakure ninjas. It was nearly two weeks since the last attack from the enemy.

Minato himself was beginning to worry.

Aimlessly, he trailed around the training grounds, leaving footprints in the snow only for them to be covered up within a few minutes. Blue eyes cautiously flickered around the white scenery, as if expecting a sudden attack from an Iwa ninja. He stood in that single spot for several minutes, until he finally moved forward. The blond brushed the snow off his head as well as that which had gathered atop his jacket-covered shoulders. Minato started his aimless trailing once more.

He finally halted at the edge of the frozen stream, staring down at the icy surface and looking back at a blurred reflection of himself. Minato tilted his head to the side at the reflection, before he reached out with his foot. The ice was well frozen enough not to break beneath his weight, so he stepped out to stand atop the frosted stream.

Anxious.

The sudden pause in the war was just nerve-wracking to Minato.

It was like how the village was still because of the snow fall this year. Like time had just come to a sudden halt.

He didn't like it.

Not while the war was still going on. It gave him the impression that the enemy was planning something big. Something that made them confident. It made Minato paranoid just thinking about it.

The blond whirled around to look back in the direction of the village, only to see the gray skies as well as the falling snow blocking his sight of the taller buildings. His fingers fidgeted at his sides as he bit his lower lip, anxiously stealing several glances around the training grounds once more. He _hated_ this... He would rather have skirmishes going on than this unnatural stillness.

Instinct overcame him when there was a slight movement a few yards off. He drew a kunai and whipped his hand so that it flew at a high speed. Minato then disappeared, and in an instant he had a hold of the kunai again, slashing out at open air.

"..." Minato's mouth twitched as he stayed where he was, feeling the snow drop onto his shoulder from a tree branch overhead. He sighed and hung his head, lowering his arm back down to his sides. He shook his head a few times and turned around to trail out of the training grounds, sinking up to his ankles in snow as he walked. The blond glanced down at the kunai with the seal on the handle, inwardly wondering what to do with it.

_It's too light_. _I end up losing my balance half the time I use it..._ Minato thought as he continued to stare at the seal formula. Unconsciously, he walked around the bushes and then finally looked up when the fences appeared. The blond quickly jumped over it and landed on the other side, the snow softening the impact. Minato paused to straighten himself as well as brush the snow off his clothing.

He cast another wary glance over his shoulder to look at the white-layered training grounds, before he mouth twitched and he turned to head back in the direction of the village. Back to civilization.

Minato glanced back down at the kunai in his open palm. He stared at the seal formula for several seconds as he plodded through the snowdrifts, before curling his fingers around the handle and dropping his arm down to his side.

_What'll I do about this...?_

* * *

Kushina grumbled softly to herself that morning. Both of her hands were raised as she pushed her hair back, the other hand clipping it in place before both limbs lowered down. She turned her head to see if the clip was securely in place, and to test if her hair fell over the left side of her face. She nodded with satisfaction and grinned slightly, before spinning around to exit the bathroom. The red-haired kunoichi paused at the doorway to take a quick glance around as if making sure the place was fairly tidy. The place was fairly clean, except for the area Daylian was sleeping in.

He was resting on the ground besides the bed, the bed sheets tugged messily down in an attempt to keep himself warm overnight. Daylian snorted in his sleep and his snoring paused for a moment as he turned to lie on his side, pulling the sheet with him.

Kushina couldn't stop herself from snorting at the sight, but shook her head as she moved forward to approach the table. She took the key and slipped it into her pockets, before taking hold of her favored scarf and wrapping it around her neck. Kushina took another glance over at Daylian, staring at him for several seconds before shrugging. She spun around and headed towards the door, only to stop when her brother stopped snoring suddenly

"Fine, don't wake me up and tell me where you're going."

Kushina refrained from rolling her eyes, but placed her gloved hands on the doorknob and turned it. "I'm gonna go visit Sae and then maybe Minato, dattebayo..." She responded over her shoulder. Daylian only remained where he was resting on the floor.

"... Alright."

"Che... Bye, 'dad'." Kushina rolled her eyes at her own sarcasm, but pulled the door open and then exited, closing it carefully behind her, before pausing to glance around at the whitened village. She tilted her head upwards to look up at the gray sky, watching the snow fall for several seconds, frowning slightly but then shrugged lightly as she moved forward to head down the stairs. At the same time, she adjusted her scarf as well as her long-sleeved shirt, which Sae had generously donated to her now that the temperature was beginning to fall below freezing

Kushina skipped the last couple of steps, nearly slipping in the process, but quickly regained her footing and took a glance around to check if anyone saw. There were barely any people around, and since Kushina didn't yelp or anything, the villagers who were outside never turned to look at her.

The kunoichi sighed slightly in relief. Leaving footprints behind in the snow, the kunoichi walked onto the street to head for the _Yamanaka Hana_. The sound of her feet crushing the snow barely made much noise against the silent village, but only seemed to add to the scenery of the snow-covered village. Her breath was visible before her eyes, just like it had been for the past week or so.

Rubbing her gloved hands together and then breathing warm air into them, Kushina carried on walking down the streets. Her eyes flickered around at the shop names, as if trying to see past the falling snow and the light haze. Kushina paused and turned slightly to look up at a shop name. Shaking her head at the snow, Kushina turned around completely and then entered the shop, brushing the snow off her shoulders and from the top of her head.

"Ohayo, Sae-" Kushina turned her head to look up, then instantly toppled backwards, her hands grabbing at the door frame to keep herself from falling out into the snow again.

"Mm?" The Uchiha glanced over her shoulder, and Sae leaned to the side to peer around the black-haired kunoichi. The Yamanaka's eyes widened for a moment and then she moved around the counter, approaching Kushina and steadying her.

"Kushina-chan?" Sae questioned worriedly as she tried to get the redhead's balance back. Kushina continued to stare at the Uchiha, or rather, the crest that was visible just beneath her black hair. The sight of the fan-like crest disappeared as the Uchiha member turned around.

"Are you alright?"

"..." Kushina fell silent before she slowly straightened herself, avoiding the black-haired kunoichi's gaze as she fixed her clothing again. "Yeah.. sorry... I just.. slipped, dattebayo." She lied smoothly. Her mouth twitched and she tried to push away the thoughts, the images of the Uchiha who had assaulted her a while ago.

Sae tilted her head as she continued to stare at her friend with concern, before she nodded and spun around to skip to the older kunoichi in the shop.

"Kushina-chan, this is Uchiha Mikoto." The Yamanaka introduced once she was by Mikoto's side. The Uchiha member smiled as she brushed back some of her bangs, then bowed slightly in a greeting. "Mikoto-chan, Uzumaki Kushina."

"Hi.." Kushina murmured. Out of caution, the kunoichi flickered her gaze up and down as if to examine Mikoto. She seemed a couple of years older with a mature and friendly air around her. Still, Kushina couldn't stop herself from being slightly paranoid as she slowly approached the counter.

"Uzumaki..?" Mikoto continued to smile when Kushina halted besides her. The height difference between them was clear, with the top of Kushina's head going up to Mikoto's eyes. Kushina stopped herself from frowning and nodded instead.

"That name sounds familiar..." Mikoto tilted her head and placed the tip of her index finger to her lower lip. "I think... maybe Fugaku-kun mentioned you once before...? I'm not quite sure, though."

"Fugaku?" Kushina echoed, pausing to think for herself. The name started to register after a while, and Kushina scratched her head. "Yeah... we went on a mission a year ago... can't really remember much of what happened then, datte'sa..."

Sae tilted her head to the side. "Didn't Namikaze-kun go on that mission too? If I recall..."

Mikoto couldn't stop herself from chuckling. "Ohh... Namikaze-kun is just adorable..." She continued to chuckle. Kushina was turning red at the mention of the blond, rubbing the side of her neck and avoiding meeting Sae or Mikoto's eyes.

The Yamanaka grinned slightly at Kushina's reaction. "Hmm.. Did you two kiss yet, Kushina-chan?"

Kushina sputtered at the question and covered her mouth with her hand as she looked away once more, eyes widening slightly. "..."

Mikoto blinked in surprise. "Mm? You're the one who's been going out with Namikaze-kun? I heard, but I've been wondering for a few days now..."

"Where'd you here that from?!" Kushina snapped her gaze over to the Uchiha, her demand muffled from her gloved hand covering her mouth. The visible parts of her cheeks were clearly red. Mikoto chuckled softly and then pointed a finger over at Sae.

Sae then proceeded to look around the flower shop innocently, purposely making sure that she didn't look at her flustered friend. Mikoto chuckled in response to both of them.

"Oh dear, Sae-chan... You shouldn't tease poor Kushina-chan..." The Uchiha wagged her index finger but still smiled as she turned her head to look down at the red-haired kunoichi. Kushina tugged on her scarf and folded her arms; her lower lip thrown out in a pouting expression, her face still visibly red and her eyes adverted to look at some of the other flowers.

"... No... We didn't..." She grumbled softly. Sae whined loudly in disappointment.

"Aww!! Why not?!"

"What am I? A character on a show that you fan girl over or something, dattebayo?" Kushina growled through her teeth. She finally shifted her gaze over to the Yamanaka, whom was only smiling widely.

"I can't help it, Kushina-chan.. You and Namikaze-kun and just too cute together, you know that?" Sae replied as she continued to smile. Mikoto chuckled softly again.

"How long have you two been together?"

"... Two weeks..." Kushina grumbled under her breath, rubbing her nose a bit as she sniffed in embarrassment. Sae did a comical gasp.

"And you haven't kissed yet?!"

"Will you leave me alone about that?!" Kushina retorted in response, slamming her palms on the counter top and flinching from the force. Mikoto still held the same expression, shaking her head before she turned her onyx gaze to Sae.

"Oh, Sae-chan... Let Kushina-chan and Namikaze-kun move at their own pace... Based on my experiences, things are still probably awkward between the two." Mikoto had raised an index finger in the middle of her sentences, causing Sae to fold her arms and pout with a childish expression.

Kushina's cheeks were growing painful from all the blood rushing to her cheeks, so she massaged the left side of her face gently to try and get all the blood to go back down to the rest of her body. She nodded slightly in response to what Mikoto said, and inwardly thanked the older kunoichi. Mikoto was right, and Kushina decided that the Uchiha kunoichi wasn't bad. She could probably be a figure that Kushina could go to for help if anything.

"Aww..." Sae continued to grumble in disappointment. "What experiences? You've only gone out with three guys, including Fugaku..."

"What?" Kushina couldn't stop herself from deadpanning slightly. About a second after, she regretted the reaction and flinched, slowly looking over at Mikoto. "S-sorry, I just..."

Mikoto didn't seem all that offended. She chuckled in response to Kushina's reaction instead, completely opposite of what the younger kunoichi had expected. "Oh it's alright.. Most people are surprised that Fugaku-kun and I are together.. Your reaction isn't really surprising."

Kushina lowered her head shamefully. "I didn't mean to offend, 'tebayo.." She murmured. Mikoto shook her head.

"It's alright." She repeated with her tone slightly more stern. But Mikoto's expression softened soon after, and surely enough her peaceful smile returned. "Of course it would be surprising... Fugaku-kun is rather stuck up and a by-the-book kind of guy... But he truly does love the village."

"And you." Sae murmured between a couple of fake coughs. Mikoto's cheeks colored at this. Kushina honestly didn't know how to react. She was actually having a hard time picturing someone like Fugaku going out with Mikoto.

"Sae-chan, you little matchmaker... What about _you_, hmm?" Mikoto pointed out. The question instantly grabbed Kushina's attention, clearly curious about Sae's own love life.

It was Sae's turn to blush slightly, before she waved her hands in a flustered manner. "Err... Well, I'm not in a relationship with anyone.. Though I heard I have a couple guys' attentions..." She murmured softly. The Yamanaka's blush deepened at the thought. Kushina found herself grinning with a smug demeanor, while Mikoto chuckled and leaned over the counter to stroke Sae's neat blond bangs.

"I'm not surprised... You're blossoming into a beautiful flower." Mikoto murmured softly. Sae's eyes widened slightly and her blush deepened. After a while her hands rose to cup her own cheeks, shaking her head, flustered.

"Ohh, Mikoto-chan, you're embarrassing me!"

The Uchiha kunoichi chuckled and she turned her head to look down at Kushina, whom was chuckling and grinning. "You too, Kushina-chan.. maybe not yet, but you'll just be beautiful when you grow older.."

"Yeah, yeah!" Sae's blush was slowly fading, but it was still visible as she grinned to lean over the counter. Clearly she was happy that the attention was being diverted away from her. "Just grow out your hair a little! I'm sure Namikaze-kun'll love that!"

Kushina blinked and this and instantly her face turned red, grumbling as she looked away. She tried to discard the mention of the blond Jounin by shaking her head. "But long hair will get in the way of fights, dattebayo..." She grumbled. Mikoto tilted her head with a semi-confused expression.

"... Well of course," Mikoto couldn't help but agree to what the younger kunoichi had said. "You can grow your hair out and tie it back when you're in battle..."

"Come on, Kushina-chan!" Sae giggled. "Trust us! You'll look great! Don't you want to impress Namikaze-kun...?"

Kushina squirmed when Minato was brought up again. She lowered her gaze down to the floor and fiddled with her fingers shyly. "I guess..." She murmured.

Mikoto tilted her head forward again, and was about to open her mouth to say something in response. She froze suddenly and turned her head to look out the open shop door with her mouth still agape. Kushina stiffened as well then turned to follow the Uchiha's gaze.

As soon as her gaze flickered out to the exit of the shop, there were several multi-colored blurs that shot past, kicking up snow into the street and causing a few villagers to scream in surprise. Kushina darted to the door and turned her head to look in the direction of the where the hurried ninja were headed.

"Is it another attack...?" Mikoto questioned from behind Kushina, causing the red-head to jump. Kushina looked up at Mikoto, clearly didn't sense her approaching. Sae slowly approached the two, frowning slightly, which was a rather odd sight for the usually-smiling blond.

"... Maybe I should head over to the hospital..." The Yamanaka murmured gravely.

"I'll take you there." Mikoto replied as she and Kushina entered the streets.

Kushina frowned as she stared down at the street, her fingers slowly curling into a fist at her side. She fidgeted from where she stood in the snow-covered streets, her eyes locked on one direction. Mikoto shifted, as if sensing what the kunoichi was about to do.

"Kushina-cha-" Before she could finish saying the honorific, Kushina disappeared down the streets. The younger kunoichi only ignored the Uchiha's calls, frowning slightly as she continued running. Her fists clenched tightly and then she quickly jumped onto a rooftop to continue running from there. Her eyes were locked on the large gates that surrounded the village, adrenaline already coursing through her.

_It's about time they did something, datte'sa!_

* * *

"Ha!! They decide to attack us now, do they?! Leave us alone for two weeks and then go try and invade! Who do they think they're messin' with?!"

Minato blinked as he heard the familiar voice. His pace slowed slightly from where he was following three other ninja through the rooftops, turning his head to look over his shoulder. Instantly he was nearly knocked aside when a large canine darted past, leaving large paw prints in the snow as the ninken shot past the three other ninja as well. Minato quickly regained his balance and continued to shunshin through the village with the rest of them, feeling Tsume's presence appear alongside of him.

"Yo, Kaze-yatsu!" Tsume greeted with her hands up to her forehead in a sloppy salute, grinning slightly at the blond. Minato blinked and nodded in response to this, warily forcing a smile.

"Tsume-san... was that Kuromaru just now...?" He asked as he stared up at the black ninken, whom was already several yards ahead of the group. The Inuzuka kunoichi nodded and grinned.

"Yup... Come on! Those Iwa idiots aren't just going to wait around the borders for us!" Tsume barked before she dropped down on all fours, ignoring the stinging coldness of the snow as she darted forward to increase speed, catching up to Kuromaru.

Minato blinked but nodded. "... He's gotten big." He commented to himself. But the blond grinned lightly and he darted forward, easily shooting past the three ninja and past the Inuzuka pair.

"Whoa there, Minato! Make us look like slugs, why don't you?" Another blond called with his hand cupped around his mouth. His blond hair was more pale, nearly a light tan coloring. It was also tied up in a thin and high ponytail.

His large and red-haired teammate snorted slightly. "... Sorry, I'm slowing you guys down. You guys go on ahead." He murmured. The blond shook his head.

"No can do, Chouza. We're teammates; we can't just leave you behind. Right, Shikaku?"

"... Yeah, yeah..." The third teammate murmured in a tone that was near lazy. "But we gotta get there too, you know... Can't let Minato have all the fun now can we?"

"Right." Inoichi nodded as he turned his head, blinking in surprise when Minato was no longer in sight. "... Quick guy, ain't he?"

Minato was already darting past the gates when Inoichi finished his last sentence, squinting his eyes from his own visible breath that flew into his face. The blond reached into his weapon pouch without tearing his gaze away from the white path ahead of him, taking hold of the kunai that now felt nearly weightless to him. He frowned but then shook his head and tried to ignore it, only darted forward with his grip tightening on the handle.

In a way, the blond felt relieved that there were Iwa ninja moving past the border. The paranoia he had that morning was no longer there, replaced with determination and adrenaline. He could sense other chakra flares a few kilometers deeper into the forest around him, indicating the approach of other Konoha ninja. He nodded slightly and he looked upwards when there was a screech audible. A black bird reeled around in the air above him; flying in the direction the blond himself was headed. The wind was blowing in the same direction, so the bird soon flew ahead of the blond.

Minato frowned. _The wind..._ He shook his head and only now realized it. He would have to disguise his scent in a bit.

"Kaze-yatsu!! Wait!!"

Minato nearly dug his heels in to go to a sudden halt, barely managing to catch Tsume's yell from much further behind. He flinched when his knees locked from the stop, lowering and flinching again when they cracked. He straightened himself and turned to look back. His blue eyes searched the path before Kuromaru's large figure was visible and darting along the path.

"Hey there..." The Ninken was out of breath as he slowed to a halt a few paces in front of Minato. Tsume joined up a few seconds later, placing her hand on Kuromaru's shoulder blade as her head hung to rest for a moment.

"Geezus... how can you travel so long going that fast?" Tsume growled between pants. She swallowed a bit and then exhaled once more, then straightened. Minato didn't reply instantly, still shocked at how large Kuromaru had gotten in just a year. The Ninken's head was up to Minato's chest, and that was while Kuromaru was standing regularly. Frankly, the blond didn't want to see how tall Kuromaru was when he was standing up on his back legs.

"... Err, lots of practice, Tsume-san..." Minato remembered the question and replied. Tsume shook her head and turned her head to look back at the path.

"Ino-Shika-Cho is comin' up... you know that bird earlier? That was Inoichi-yatsu." The kunoichi explained. The corner of Minato's mouth twitched and he fidgeted from where he stood, clearly wanting to just go ahead to the border of the country.

"Patience, Kaze-yatsu." Tsume growled. "Besides, you can't just go chargin' in by yourself. Team work, remember? The thing they say over and over again..."

"... Yeah..." Minato clenched his fist for a moment. He shook his head and closed his eyes for a moment, before turning his gaze up to the sky to try and look for the bird from earlier. As he searched the gray, distant skies, footsteps were audible against the snow. Minato made no move to look, seeing that he recognized the chakra signatures of the two members of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio.

"Is Inoichi back yet?" Shikaku asked once they regrouped with the other Konoha ninja. Chouza came up a few seconds after, carrying Inoichi's lifeless body on his back. Minato shook his head in response to the Nara clan member's question.

"No... Oh, wait." The blond took back his original response when he spotted a black speck in the distance, which grew larger as the seconds came by. After several seconds the bird came into clear view and folded his wings to dive down, before opening them up again to gain altitude and then head back in the direction of the village.

Inoichi stirred from where he was carried on Chouza's back, lifting his head and then craning his neck. He slid off his teammate's back and rubbed one of his stiff shoulders, growling slightly. "There are quite a lot of them... Then again, there's hundreds of Konoha nin so it shouldn't be a problem."

"So they're just marching straight ahead, then?" Tsume questioned with a brow quirked. Kuromaru snorted.

"Rather confident aren't they? To just charge right into our country..." The Ninken commented under his breath.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Minato couldn't stop the impatience from seeping into his question. The five of them couldn't help but be somewhat surprised at Minato's tone, normally used to seeing him calm to think things through.

"That's exactly what I was thinking, dattebayo!"

Kuromaru's ear swiveled and he turned his paws to jerk around, about to launch himself forward to snap his jaws. He halted half way through with his maw wide open, fangs clearly visible. "..!"

Tsume grinned at this, turning slightly and tilting her head up to look up one of the streets. "Well well... I haven't seen you around for a while... Where've you been this whole time, eh, Kushina?"

The aforementioned kunoichi tilted her head to the side as she examined the Inuzuka pair, before her memories brought up their names and she grinned. "Just been around... came back to the village a couple of weeks ago, Tsume."

"Who's she?" Shikaku questioned as he turned to his other teammates. The other two only looked just as lost as the Nara member.

"Kushina..." Minato murmured. Clearly he had mixed feelings about the kunoichi being here. He was happy that she was here and all, but at the same time he didn't want her to get injured during the incoming battle. Kushina tilted her head as she looked over at Minato, her grin widening before she jumped off the branch, landing to squat in the snow to lessen the impact on her knees.

"Minato." Kushina replied in response as she straightened herself. "You said it yourself, didn't you? Let's go kick their asses already!"

Tsume couldn't help but snicker a bit, before she threw her arm in the direction of the country's border. "Come on, they're right you know!"

"Alright, alright.. We'll save the introductions for later." Inoichi waved his hands at shoulder height before sighing softly. "If there is a later..."

"Of course there'll be a later, idiot!" Kushina growled over her shoulder. "You'll only die if you don't be careful or if you want to, 'te'sa!"

"..." Inoichi fell silent at the response, exchanging glances with the other two of their trio. Minato chuckled under his breath, but blinked when he felt Kushina tug on his arm.

"Come on!" Kushina grinned slightly as she pulled the blond forward, motioning towards Tsume and Kuromaru, whom were already darting deeper into the large forest. Minato blinked once more but then smiled and nodded, now glad that the kunoichi was here. He darted forward with Kushina a step behind, and the Ino-Shika-Cho trio bringing up the rear.

* * *

They charged right into the battle, aiding the outnumbered Konoha nin to push back the Iwa army. It was total chaos; kunai were flying in several different directions, the ground shook for every Doton jutsu that was released. Blood splattered and painted the snow red. Several bodies fell and were forgotten as the battle raged onwards. Another Iwa Jounin was in the middle of a set of hand seals when a kunai whizzed past him. He stiffened and fell forward with his eyes rolling backwards, the wound on his throat now visible.

Minato panted slightly from where he stood over the dead Jounin, his grip on the kunai wavering for a moment. He frowned slightly and then gritted his teeth, instinctively spinning around to block the incoming attack. Minato was forced backwards from the Doton-based attack, skidding on his back before he jerked to flip upright, crouching in the snow before he disappeared in a Shunshin to avoid the second attack. The same kunai he had was flung in the direction of the enemy, though he had a harder time killing the Jounin due to the earth barriers that kept shooting up to defend. Minato forced more chakra to his feet to gain speed and easily shot past the barrier before it had time to come up, finishing the Iwa Jounin with a stab to the head. The blond had to discard the kunai, but quickly peeled off the seal on the handle and darted to the next enemy.

Tsume and Kuromaru were brawling with several enemies, their stances lowered as they were surrounded by at least four Iwa shinobi. Kuromaru bared his fangs viciously before he spun around to latch his jaws onto an approaching ninja's arm, making sure that he bit down past the clothing. His jaw muscles strained, determined to get his fangs past his flesh and down to the bone. While the ninken distracted the Iwa Jounin, Tsume lunched forward to stab through his free arm, which had threatened to try and attack Kuromaru's skull. The ninken finally released the man's arm with his maw bloody. He ignored that fact and turned around to lunge himself at the three incoming ninja. Tsume growled and slashed at the Iwa Jounin with her claws, easily raking her sharpened nails across his eyes. She then jumped and then pushed off his chest to send him snarling backwards, using him as leverage to launch herself to aid Kuromaru.

The Ino-Shika-Cho's progress was slow but rather effective. Shikaku would cast a long-range Kage Mane across the battle field, which was easy enough in the chaos of the fight. At least a minimum of then would be caught from the Nara-clan's jutsu, which gave Inoichi a good opportunity to send his own mind into one of them. Shikaku promptly released the Iwa nin that his teammate was now in, leaving Inoichi to dart off into battle with the element of surprise. The Nara member smirked warily at the surprised reaction of the Iwa ninja, being sure to stay close to Inoichi's body and capture any enemy that strayed too close. The ground shook once more, but Chouza's straining yell was audible above the rumbling. The larger Akimichi gripped the trunk of the tree more tightly, straining slightly before he finally uprooted the large tree, still yelling his loud battle cry as he held the tree above his head. Shikaku smirked and watched as the tree was thrown at the trapped Iwa ninja, his eyes skillfully watching before he released the jutsu as the last possible second, jumping backwards and shaking his head at the sickening snaps that were audible for a second.

Kushina had to admit, she wasn't doing as well as she thought she would. Clearly they expected her hoards of Bunshin this time, a few of them managing to injure the bunshin enough for them to disappear. The kunoichi growled and produced a few more bunshin and then darted into the battle herself, a kunai drawn and gripped tightly. She jumped over one of her own bunshin and landed a spinning kick in the man's chest, jerking to try and lash out with the kunai in a second attack. The first attack landed and the Jounin backed up, just missing the kunai from slashing across his face. Kushina scowled at this but decided to let her bunshin finish the rest, spinning around to attack another enemy. Before she could even reach the Jounin, a large fireball consumed him and the area around him, turning everything in her sight red and orange for several seconds. The fire died down, and Kushina barely missed the Uchiha who had cast the Katon.

Her eyes flickered down to the cremated Iwa body, but her attention was soon drawn to all the melted snow from the high temperature of the Katon. She looked down at her own feet and saw that she was also standing in cold water, before a wide smirk etched across her face. Kushina clasped her hands into a first hand seal, before quickly flickering in other seals, closing her eyes for a moment to draw out a large amount of chakra. _Suiton..._

Minato's eyes widened from the large chakra flare from the other side of the battlefield, but quickly shot his attention back to what he was doing and lashed his arm out to stab the man. The Jounin was rather thick-headed, so Minato had to slash at his head numerous times before he actually fell. The blond panted slightly as he stopped to rest and catch his breath on a high tree branch to stare down at the battle, eyes searching for the source of the chakra. His question was soon answered with a large gush of water flooding the battlefield, several whirlpools dragging the Iwa ninja down to drown them. A few of them managed to succeed in jumping out of the water, but they were soon tackled down by another animal that Minato recognized.

If they weren't drowned, then the Iwa ninja were attacked by Daylian or any other Konoha nin who seized the opportunity. The Suiton was swirled red with blood, before it faded from sight as Daylian resurfaced, panting slightly. The wolf shifted and stood atop the body of water, violet eyes flickering around before he darted across the water's surface to attack another Iwa ninja that was trying to escape.

Kushina grinned slightly from where she was lowered onto one knee, her hands pressed flat on the bare ground while eyes watched large Suiton. It only began to increase in size since the water was melting the snow, though Kushina had to wonder how long it would take before the cold temperature would start freezing the Suiton attack. She shook her head. Probably not for a while. The kunoichi winced and was forced to pull one hand off the ground to grip the new wound she received on her arm. Her eyes looked around wildly for the attacker, but only received another gash on her good arm. Kushina snarled and pulled her hands off the ground, and instantly the Suiton was released. Water flooded the grounds, drenching the kunoichi from the waist and below.

Minato's eyes narrowed at this and he turned his head to look for the kunoichi, disappearing in a shunshin. He was cut off and quickly ducked beneath a kunai, blue eyes narrowing further when a few strands of his blond hair was cut. Minato quickly flipped upright and drew one of his kunai, using the same hand to secretly fold a Hiraishin seal onto the handle.

"Ah aha... We meet again, Kiroi Senkou of Konoha."

"Masuhita!" Minato barked as he looked around wildly. Instinctively, he spun around and blocked the attack from behind, flinching at the force of the assault. Masuhita smirked at this and he snorted softly, though his own arm trembled from the lock.

"You're proving to be quite a problem... you and that Uzumaki girl..." Masuhita commented. He casted a glance around at the drenched and freezing battleground, assessing how many was left of the Iwa platoons. "A little under half depleted in less than an hour of crossing the country's border..." The Iwa Jounin jumped back and threw the kunai, which Minato simply deflected out of the way.

While Minato was deflecting the weapon, Masuhita was already half-way through a set of large seals. He clasped his hands on the last sign- the tiger. _Doton..._

The ground rumbled and came to life, before sliding downwards in a deep slope. The Iwa ninja gave no sign of panic, only flickering their own hands in a set of seals and disappearing into the earth, reappearing behind Masuhita with their hands still clasped into hand signs. Minato growled as he felt the ground beneath his feet move, slowly sliding him towards the pit. He disappeared in a shunshin and narrowly missed the whip of earth that had come to life in an attempt to keep him firmly on the ground.

Kushina's eyes narrowed when the ground first started shifting, and got to her feet with Daylian nosing her up as well. The wolf growled darkly and his hackles rose, lips curling up to bare his fangs. Kushina only continued to frown, her hand applying pressure to the deeper gash of the two injuries. Tsume and Kuromaru darted past the kunoichi, glancing back at her and silently telling to follow. Daylian shifted and then butted Kushina lightly in the leg, before darting after the Inuzuka pair. Kushina remained where she was for several seconds, before she finally turned around to follow.

The earth stopped sloping downwards after several more seconds, creating a large pit between them. A numerous amount of the Iwa Jounin were performing hand seals in unison. Several of them murmured the animals of the seal, before the muttering voices came to a halt at the last seal. The ground trembled beneath all of the ninja's feet.

Kushina paused and glanced over her shoulder at this, eyes narrowing. Several figures crawled up from the deep depths of the pit, looking rather disfigured due to the fact that they were made up of earth. They took up the shape of lizards as they slithered around, being directed by the Iwa ninja on the other side of the pit. Eventually their polished-rock eyes lay at rest on Kushina, before the largest rushed forward to attack.

Kushina forced herself to move, placing her hands in a seal to try and draw up whatever was left of her previous Suiton attack. She flinched when she removed her hand from her gash and instantly replaced it, darting backwards without her gaze leaving the earth creatures.

"Kushina!!"

She heard several voices bark in unison. The kunoichi felt a sudden rush of wind and a flash of yellow, before she was swiftly swept off her feet and out of range of the earth lizards. The Doton creatures screeched and turned its head to look around, jagged rocks in placement of claws digging into the ground where Kushina had once stood.

Minato sighed in relief and quickly darted around a few trees with Kushina still in his arms, blue eyes focused forward. He skidded to a halt once he sensed the other Konoha ninja nearby, instantly lowering to place Kushina back on her feet. Kushina bit her lip and tried to ignore the fact that she was surrounded by worried fellows, trying to apply a bit more pressure to the gash on her forearm.

"That was reckless, you know that?" Daylian hissed as he nosed his way towards the kunoichi. He took a moment to sniff the wound, before grimacing and recoiling.

"Shh... Stay low." Shikaku growled from where he was crouching behind a wall of snow-covered foliage, raising his head to peer up over it. The screeches of the Doton creatures were faintly audible, indicating of how far they were away from the group.

"..." Tsume frowned but tried to slowly calm herself, not wanting to add onto the tense air. She reverted her attention back down to the injured kunoichi, scowling at the scent. "We gotta get that cleaned up... If they have a sense of smell, then they'll find us soon..."

"I know, I know, 'tebayo..." Kushina hissed. She removed her hand from her forearm for a moment, quickly tearing at the sleeves of her shirt and inwardly apologizing to Sae. Kushina mopped up some of the blood and then proceeded to wrap the cloth fragments around her arm, having a rather difficult time tying it with one hand. Minato moved his hands at this, gently brushing her hand away and tying the cloth tightly. Kushina flinched for a moment but endured it, shifting to get up.

"Stay low." Shikaku repeated from where he was keeping watch.

"So just what are we supposed to do now?" Tsume growled under her breath as she turned carefully on her feet, remaining crouching as she turned to look over at the Ino-Shika-Cho trio. Inoichi shrugged warily and continued to rub his temple, grumbling softly to himself.

"We can't just go back to the village, that's for sure." Kushina spat as she bandaged her second wound. Minato dipped his head into a nod of agreement. An Uchiha from earlier snorted.

"Whoever said that we were going back to the village to begin with?"

"Watch your mouth." Daylian growled instantly. "Arrogant Uchiha..."

"Don't start fighting now..." Minato murmured warningly. "We're just going to have to stay put for now... those.. things.. probably consume large chunks of chakra, so the best we can probably do is wait, unless someone has a jutsu that can counter it..."

There were several exchanging of glances and a couple of murmurs, but the remaining Konoha platoons shook their heads no.

"You kids should just head back to the village... Get some backup." An older Jounin murmured. Kushina snorted.

"And leave you geezers to deal with those things? I'd rather stay here than go running back to the village with my tail between my legs."

"..." Kuromaru and Daylian exchanged glances with each other but decided to discard the words. Kushina only ignored the two and frowned. Minato sighed.

"We're not Genin anymore, sir..." He murmured to the older Jounin that had suggested the idea. "I'm already a Jounin, and so are some of the others here. The remainders are Chuunin... fully capable of staying here... back up is a good idea, but all of us can't go... Maybe one or two, but-"

"Shit!!" Shikaku yelled as he scrambled to disappear into a shunshin.

Minato's eyes narrowed and instantly he disappeared in a shunshin, giving no warning as he pulled Kushina along with him. Tsume looked puzzled for a moment but then stiffened, before she got up and bounded after the blond. The trees crashed apart suddenly as the lizards screeched, standing over the fallen trunks and lashing out at any slow-reacting ninja. One of them got stabbed and caught on the jagged rock-claws, going limp a second after. It gave the rest of the Konoha shinobi enough time to escape deeper into the country.

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **... Okay, so maybe not _all_ Uchihas act like they have a stick up their ass, but at least eight out of ten of them do. :c I have to admit, Mikoto is pretty fun to write out, so I might bring her into the story a few more times...

-rubs paws together- Gomen, gomen... but I just love typing battles and war stories out... Don't worry, there will be more fluff.. just a bit in the future.  
And sorry for the late update... but I was on a small vacation and I went to an anime convention. So fun! I saw Tobi! Cx (And I saw Minato's cloak... but my mum wouldn't let me buy it even though I had more than enough moneys. Dx Oh the sadness! But I got a plushie of him so that's good for now. x3)

Thanks much for the reviews and all the support. ;-;


	19. Phenomenon

**Chapter XIX: Phenomenon**

Hands flickered at high speed, the fingers folding and unfolding to create the designated seals necessary for the jutsu, the ground vibrating for a few seconds after the seals were complete before it faded. Soon the sound of stomping was audible, shaking the earth beneath as the large earth lizards approached the large ditch. One by one they slithered down, and the ditch closed up, leaving the ground slightly uneven from the rest of the dirt surrounding it.

Iwata Masuhita smirked from where he was watching, crouching on a nearby branch with his arms resting lazily on his thighs.

This was good. They were slowly driving the Konohagakure ninja back into their own country.

He looked over his shoulder and silently wondered how long it would be until the backup arrived. Masuhita himself, of course, had gone on ahead to check out the status of the first wave. The rest behind were slowly coming along, most likely preparing any necessary weapons or strategies.

Masuhita looked down at the remaining number of the first attack wave. Most of them looked rather tired, the few who had conjured the earth-lizards sitting on the ground to regain their breath. The Iwa Jounin snorted from where he crouched on the tree branch. He admit it himself that the jutsu had taken a large chunk of his chakra, and he wasn't about to show it like those careless ninja on the ground.

"Come on!" He barked as he disappeared from the branch, landing on the ground a second or two later. "Let's wear them out a bit more until the rest catch up."

"They're on the way then?" One of the Iwa ninja murmured between pants.

"Of course they are, idiot." Masuhita snapped. "Now on your feet. A few of those ninja we just chased off were only half your age." He sneered tauntingly. The Iwa ninja cast wary glances with each other, before they got to their feet unsteadily.

* * *

"... I think they've stopped moving for now..." Tsume muttered under her breath as she peered around the trunk of a tree, narrowed eyes flickering around in search for the earth lizards that had pursued them only minutes ago. Her nose twitched slightly when she inhaled to try and catch a scent on the cold breeze, closing her eyes as she concentrated further, extending her sense of smell and doing her best to ignore the different scents coming from the Konoha platoons behind her. A frown crossed her face. "..."

"Are they coming, Tsume-san?" Minato murmured from where he was crouching on the tree branch above her. The Inuzuka kunoichi's nose twitched again, before she opened her eyes.

"They're coming."

"..." The Konoha group fell silent at Tsume's response, exchanging glances with each other as they all shifted in unison, preparing themselves to head deeper into the forest. Minato jumped down from the branch and instantly moved over to Kushina, his mouth cocking into a half-frown. The kunoichi noted the expression and followed his blue gaze down to her bandaged arms, before she snorted and moved past him.

"I'm fine..." She mumbled. Minato turned his head to look at her, before he spun around completely and followed her as well as the rest of the Konoha group.

"So we're just going to keep retreating or something?" The sole Uchiha of the group growled. "I'd rather die charging at them rather than running away like a coward!"

"You think we really have a choice? We're all tired and some injured, and if that one guy appeared then that means more Iwa ninja are coming for back up." Shikaku growled. "Speaking of which, we need to send word out and request backup ourselves... Other than that, the best we can do is take advantage of the terrain and keep avoiding them..."

"... If we send word out, it's one less ninja to help defend ourselves as well as the country." A Jounin muttered.

"... Then we'll just send someone who won't lower our numbers." Minato growled in response. Kushina raised a brow and glanced over at him from the corner of her eye.

The blond only bit down into his thumb, easily biting through the skin to get some blood out. He swiftly painted the blood onto one palm and lowered onto his knee, his hands flickering in the needed seals. _inu, tori, saru, hitsuji... Kuchiyose! _Minato placed his blood-painted palm flat on the ground, several runes instantly appearing and fanning out, withdrawing his hand when there was a cloud of smoke and an audible _poof_!

"... Ah! If it isn't Namikaze-senpai!" The toad was probably no bigger than Minato's hand, wearing a vest as well as an obi to keep it closed against the cold weather. There was a small twig in his mouth, which shifted as he spoke.

"Whoa... a Toad." Kushina blinked in surprise and squatted down besides Minato to get a better look, eyes clearly curious. The toad blinked as well, fidgeting uncomfortably. He tried to revert his attention back to Minato.

"So what do you want, Namikaze-senpai? I hope it's something good.. because it's freezing..." He shivered and hugged himself with his orange-brown arms. Minato glanced down at the toad and cast a glance around, as if trying to guess the direction of the village.

"We need reinforcements... immediately, Gamaeda." Minato explained, continuing to look down at the toad. "But we can't really risk sending anyone here... and you're small, so you won't be noticed instantly."

"... Bah! I maybe be quick, but Gamarachi should've been summoned... he's a speedy guy." Gamaeda muttered as he kept his arms folded, before he sighed and nodded, spitting out the twig in his mouth and making Kushina jump back to dodge it. "Leave it to me, Namikaze-senpai. I'll get to the village as quickly as I can."

"Arigatou."

"... They're still coming..." Tsume growled warningly from the back of the group. Minato nodded at this and lowered to put Gamaeda down, who saluted before quickly spinning around and launching himself over some bushes, disappearing from sight. Kushina looked slightly disappointed at the disappearance of the toad, but returned her gaze to the rest of the platoon when they started to disappear into the forest.

"Come on, Kushina..." The kunoichi blinked and turned her head to look at Minato, who held his hand out to her. Kushina could feel her cheeks color as she took hold of his hand, being pulled slightly by the speed the blond was going. "Whoa..!"

"Shh!!" A few of the Jounin hissed in unison, making Kushina grumble. Minato smiled in amusement as he looked back at her, but adjusted his pace so that he wasn't too fast, nor too slow so that they both fell behind in the group.

Kushina cast a wary glance over her shoulder. Personally, she didn't like running away like this.. It made her feel _weak_.. And it was practically going against what she had said earlier when the earth lizards had struck. She was snapped out of her thoughts when she sensed a sudden chakra flare in the distance behind them.

The rest of the Konoha platoons seemed to notice instantly as well, shoulders visibly tensing while others looked behind them, as if expecting a large Doton jutsu to be visible. Kushina flinched slightly when Minato's grip on her hand tightened. But she tried her best to endure it, frowning slightly as she looked back over her shoulder again.

What she really wanted to do right now was turn around and charge right back into a battle. Kushina bit her lip and quickly flickered her gaze around to the rest of the tense Konoha ninja. There were probably only five platoons of them, which included herself and the other ninja that who were with Minato before the battle had started. The kunoichi frowned. And how many Iwa ninja were still remaining despite the fighting? At least five more platoons more than Konoha.

She didn't really want to be reckless... During the year-long mission with Daylian, she had nearly gotten both of them killed when she charged right into a skirmish without thinking.

Kushina's gaze slid to Minato's back. Her eyes slowly trailed downwards, watching at the blurring tree branches and foliage below as they traveled in Shunshins. She frowned slightly, and a determined look crossed her face. _No... I won't let him die... I won't let any of us get killed._

"What do we do?! There's no way that frog's gonna get to Konoha in time! And they're starting to catch up to us!!" Tsume barked, a small hint of panic in her voice.

"We keep going!" Minato growled. "We have a slight advantage over them since we know the country better than they do."

"A shinobi's gotta use the terrain to his advantage, right?" Shikaku commented from where he was bringing up the rear with his two teammates. Minato nodded at this.

"Right... The only problem is that if we keep running like this, the backup might have a hard time getting to us right away..." The blond muttered.

"..." The Konoha platoons fell silent upon this point. Kushina scowled and pulled her hand out of Minato's, making him blink and look back at her.

"Then let's just steer them away..." The kunoichi growled as she shifted to raise her hands in a seal. Her eyes narrowed a bit and she flinched, pausing on a branch to clutch her bandaged forearm. Minato halted a few branches ahead, instantly jumping back to lower down besides her. The rest of the group slowed to a halt a few paces ahead of the two.

"Oh for god's sake... We should have sent her to get the backup instead of a stupid toad." The Uchiha growled impatiently. "She's pretty much useless if her arms keep smartin' like that."

Kushina shot him a cold glare and removed her hand from her wound, gritting her teeth in annoyance. She was about to bark something back at him, but Minato placed a hand on her shoulder to stop her.

"We're still being chased... We can't waste time arguing with one another..." He murmured. Kushina bit her lower lip at this, stopping when it felt like her teeth would bite right through the skin.

"I have an idea... but I can't really make much more Bunshins..." She muttered. "It might give us some extra time to get away, dattebayo."

"...!" Minato's eyes widened slightly, before he nodded and casted a glance around at the rest of them. "I think I know where she's going with this... It might be a bit risky, but it's worth a try if it'll divert the Iwa ninja away from us..." As soon as he finished speaking, he raised his hands to make a sequence of seals, conjuring a couple of Kage Bunshins and frowning at how low his chakra level dropped. He tried to brush off the fact, glimpsing as one of the Bunshins did a henge into a clone of Kushina.

"..." Several of the remaining Konoha Jounins exchanged wary glances with each other, but nodded and silently decided that this was a tactic worth trying. They all created Bunshins of themselves, as well as a few spares for those who were too low on chakra. Soon enough there was a duplicate of the original ninjas, each exchanging glances with each other before the Bunshin platoons disappeared into the forest.

"Now we have to keep our chakra levels low and mask our scents completely..." Daylian muttered.

"First of all, we have to get out of here... They're still probably heading in this direction.. the Iwa ninja." Shikaku pointed out, shifting to drop down from the branches. "Let's get as far away from here as possible... And tend to our injuries while the Iwa nin are being lead by the Bunshins."

"Right." Minato nodded and glanced over at Kushina, whom frowned darkly at the mentions of the injuries. She could also feel several other looks from the Konoha ninja, especially a long glare from the Uchiha. Kushina tried her best to ignore these glares, especially since Minato had placed a hand on her shoulder again to silently calm her. The blond guided her off the tree branch and onto the ground to follow the rest of their comrades.

Daylian trotted after him with the larger Kuromaru next to him, pausing a bit to look in the direction the Iwa ninja were coming from. His ears folded back against his skull, before he turned and continued to follow the rest of them through the forest.

"Yeah, I know... I can smell a whole bunch of them too." Kuromaru growled under his breath.

"..." Daylian's violet gaze slid over to the large ninken, before he shook his head and sighed. "Those reinforcements better get here quick... Otherwise we're dead."

"Don't say that, nii-san." Kushina growled over her shoulder. "Even if they do catch us, they're all slow asses 'cept for that one guy."

"..." _Iwata Masuhita..._ Minato frowned and his blue eyes stared ahead blankly. His fist clenched slightly as he turned his head to look over his shoulder. _Will our battle be sooner than expected...?_

"Ugh... Come on, we have to keep moving... We can't just shunshin because the chakra will give us away... So let's pick up the pace back there, would ya?" Shikaku growled over his own shoulder. Minato's train of thoughts was broken for a second, before he nodded and took larger steps to catch up with the rest of the group. He could feel Kushina moving to keep in pace with him.

_... I want to fight him._Minato thought as he glanced over his shoulder again. _... But I know I'm still a few levels lower than him. I want to fight him as equals... It's not really possible at the moment. Masuhita knows about the Hiraishin and can pretty much counter it... _

Minato sighed softly at this, catching Kushina's look from the corner of his eyes. He turned his head to glance over at her and immediately noticed the worried look she was giving him. The corner of his mouth twitched before he warily smiled.

"It's nothing... I'm just thinking about Masuhita is all.." He murmured softly. Kushina tilted her head at this and glanced over in the direction they were pacing away from. Her eyes flickered for a second before she shook her head to look back to the front.

"... Let's hope the backup gets here quickly," Kushina muttered. "I hate running away like this."

* * *

"Just where are they heading? If I know correctly, the direction of their village is this way..." An Iwa Jounin muttered from where they were darting through the forest, his right arm raised to motion in the direction opposite of where they were headed. His eyes were looking over at Masuhita, whom was traveling through the treetops a few yards away.

"..." Masuhita frowned slightly at this observation, but smirked and pushed off another branch and flipped right onto the next one with ease. "Maybe they're too confident." He commented.

"... But sir.."

"Pace yourselves, everyone." Masuhita called into the forest, ignoring the protest from the Jounin that spoke earlier. "They're using up a little bit more energy just to stay ahead of us. We'll keep coursing them until they get tired. They have to rest eventually."

"Sir!" Several unified replies came a second after. Masuhita only continued to smirk.

Minutes ago, the rest of the Iwa army had arrived to reinforce their first attack wave. Now they were spread out slightly and traveling through the forest in pursuit of the Konoha ninjas.

Masuhita had to wonder why the enemy was so confident as to head _away_from their home village. Their platoon wasn't that large itself, and the Iwa army already easily outnumbered them. Why not return to their own village for backup and supplies?

_Alright, Namikaze. Just what do you have up your sleeve that makes you so confident that you can win against this whole army? You might be able to move at an unimaginable speed, but to head away from your village? What are you planning...?_

Curiosity was beginning to gnaw at Masuhita and he frowned slightly, his smirk returning soon after and he glanced around at the Iwa ninja. They were still traveling further off away from him, none of them moving past him at the speed they were going. He snorted and returned his gaze to the front, continuing to move forward at a steady pace.

Eventually, he felt the dim chakra flares slowing down. He smirked at the closing gap between himself and the Konoha platoon. Masuhita raised his hand in a motion for the Iwa ninja to prepare themselves, before he used the same hand to draw a kunai. He darted forward at a large burst of speed, thrusting the blade forward and straight into the back of a Konoha Jounin.

Then it disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"!!" Masuhita's black eyes narrowed at the kunai where it was once embedded in the Jounin's shoulder blade, staring at the empty spot before he recovered. _That Uzumaki girl's Bunshin..._He looked up and frowned, remaining on the branch he stood on while the other Iwa Jounin shot past him to fire Doton attacks, yelling war cries as they did.

There were several more clouds of smoke, while the Konoha ninja tried to escape into the forest once more. Masuhita caught a small blur of yellow and instantly disappeared towards it. He gritted his teeth and narrowed his eyes into a glare. _If it's a..._He barely finished what he was thinking as he lashed out with the kunai. Black pupils dilated angrily when the Bunshin disappeared in a cloud of smoke as well as an audible _poof!_

"Iwata-taichou, sir... They're all just Kage Bunshins..." An Iwa Jounin growled from where he was balancing on a stalagmite he conjured.

Masuhita's grip tightened severely on the kunai, and he turned around to face South where Konoha lie. "Was that your plan, Namikaze?! To divert us away?! It only gave you a few minutes!! We're still comin' after you, Konoha!!" He snarled, before his gaze snapped to the rest of the Iwa army.

"Fan out and move towards Konoha! We're going to push them all the way back and do whatever damage we can to their village!"

"Sir!"

Masuhita frowned despite the crisp responses. He hastily returned the kunai to his holster and darted through the forest ahead of the group, moving in a burst of speed. Sure, it might give away the fact that he was coming, but the disappearance of the Bunshins should have already notified them otherwise.

Masuhita forced himself to smirk.

"I don't have time for silly games, Namikaze. If you and I shall fight someday, then don't lay out such diversions. This is our fight, not some clones'. Watch out, Kiroi Senkou!!"

* * *

"Oh... crap..!!" Kushina cursed under her breath at the news, gritting her teeth as she glanced over her shoulder. Surely enough everyone including her could sense the sudden chakra burst in the distance, indication of approaching Iwa ninja. Kushina's gaze snapped down to her hand when she felt another touching it, forcing herself to calm down.

"You're kinda jumpy... Here, everyone." Tsume growled, opening Kushina's hand to drop a small pill into her palm. "I didn't think we'd have to eat these since the backup was coming... but since the Iwa ninja are starting to catch up, looks like we don't have any other choice."

Kushina only tilted her head as she stared down at the small, round pill in her palm, glancing around and watching as everyone else swallowed it.

"It's supposed to replenish your chakra..." Minato explained before plopping the one Tsume gave him into his own mouth. Kushina raised her brow at this, but shrugged and put it in her mouth then swallowed it. Almost instantly she felt the wariness from a second ago lift from her body, blinking at this.

"Whoa."

"I take it they didn't have Hyorogan in Uzu..." Tsume snickered a bit as she fed one to Kuromaru.

"S'that what they're called?" Daylian's question was muffled as he tried his best to swallow the pill, getting it down his throat after a few tries.

"Mm-hmm... Though we can't just wait around for them like this." Tsume growled. "They're going to catch up eventually, and we're still nowhere near Konoha."

"I can't really sense anyone coming..." A Jounin murmured as he jumped down from some of the higher branches of a large tree. "How can we be sure the toad even got there?"

"..." Minato frowned warily at this. He shook his head and opened his mouth to say something, but got cut off.

"Then let's just stand our ground 'til the backup gets here! I don't know about you guys, but I feel totally energized now that my chakra's back, 'tebayo!" Kushina grinned slightly from where she was punching the air swiftly a few times, then doing a light uppercut on an imaginary enemy.

"Are you stupid or something?"

Kushina's punching instantly ceased at the Uchiha's question, frowning with her eye twitching. "No, I'd fight than run away." She growled through her teeth.

"It's not that easy, you know." The Uchiha continued to growl. "We might've taken out a lot back at the first battle, but that one guy... He knew what he was doing..," He paused for a moment, but frowned again. "This isn't just some game, you know! It's a war!"

"You think I don't know that?" Kushina shot back at him. Her pupils narrowed angrily and her fists clenched at her sides. "But I'm not going to run away, either. I'll just keep fighting and fighting until the damn backup gets here!"

"And what if the backup doesn't show?" The Uchiha pointed out.

"Then you'll remember me as the stubborn idiot who refused to run like the rest of you." Kushina snapped back, raising her arms to fold them across her chest.

Minato's eyes widened at this and stepped forward to finally intervene in the argument. "Kushina... First of all, you're not going to die here... rather, I won't _let _you get killed." He murmured in a rather stern tone. Minato could see Kushina's cheeks color at this, and soon felt his own face turning red as well. "Secondly... we can't just charge straight into them either..."

"Hey, they're going to catch up if we keep standing around arguing!!" Shikaku growled. "Sorry, whatever your name is. I think half of us wouldn't mind fighting like you, but we have to be realistic, you know. When the backup comes, we'll have a higher chance of actually winning this battle, and we can get more weapons and stuff."

"..."

"Come on, Kushina... We shouldn't argue with our comrades." Minato murmured as he reached out to take hold of the kunoichi's arm.

Normally, Kushina would have brushed off the blonde's arm and continue arguing. But this was Minato, not some random Jounin trying to break up the fight. So she slowly forced herself to calm down and allowed to be guided into the forest by Minato, inwardly seething as she glared at the ground. The red-haired kunoichi could feel the pace being quickened drastically within a minute, but she ignored it, knowing that Minato would keep her in pace with everyone else.

She hated this. She hated running away.

It reminded her too much of when she was forced to run away. ... _Forced_? Okay, so maybe that word was a bit strong for_ that_ situation.

So her brother begged her to escape. He wanted her to continue living her life.

Only to keep running away?

Kushina's frown deepened as she continued to think silently to herself. To any other person, she looked like she was sulking after losing the argument. She was, at first. But now her mind was clouded with thoughts of her brother and the fact that she was running away. _Again_.

"O-oi... Something's coming in unusually fast..." Kuromaru mumbled, his black nose twitching as he casted a wary glance over his shoulder.

The large flare of chakra managed to snap Kushina out of her train of thoughts. Warily, every one of the Konoha platoons looked back at this. Instinctively, they all picked up speed to try and create distance between themselves and the attacker. Most of them jumped to the trees to continue fleeing from there, though they all tensed when they could feel the ground shiver even as they stood up on high branches of the trees.

Minato's eyes narrowed as he saw the ground squirm, as if about to mold and take shape of something. He spun around at this and shot in the direction they were originally fleeing from, drawing a kunai for both hands then burst through the foliage to lash out.

Masuhita easily leaned back to avoid the first attack, but used a shunshin to dodge the second. The jutsu he was casted released and crumbled back to the ground when the seal sequence was broken. Though another Doton rock shot up from the ground, allowing Masuhita to land atop it.

Minato was about to dart forward into another attack, but halted dead in his tracks with his blue eyes widening. "!!"

"Well, Namikaze? Are you going to try and come after me now?" Masuhita sneered a bit from where he crouched atop the high stone. "With the rest of these guys behind me?"

"Th... there's at least a hundred of them..." Minato could hear a Jounin say further behind him. The blond's own eyes were still locked on the numerous Iwa ninja, whom were all aligned like a long wall behind Masuhita. A couple of more Iwa Jounins darted forward, appearing on a tree branch near Masuhita, making Minato frown. _The commanders...?_

"Eh... there's only just a couple of platoons of them." The taller of the two muttered as he folded his arms across his vest-covered chest. Several scars riddled his face as well as any visible flesh on him. He was also missing an eye, which he kept closed in placement of wearing bandages or an eye patch.

The second man was crouching in the tree like how Masuhita was on the rock, with a swoop of dark-brown hair covering half of his face. He wore a long, baggy-sleeved shirt beneath his Jounin vest, his hitai-ate attached diagonally across the vest. His black eyes, almost close to being a navy color, swept across the Konoha ninja before eventually resting on Minato in the front.

"... Then let's just kill them all. And advance into the village." He murmured- no emotion audible. Masuhita snorted.

"Easy there, Takao-aniki..." Masuhita snickered slightly. "Don't underestimate the Kiroi Senkou."

"Kiroi Senkou?" Takao questioned, his black-navy gaze sliding to Masuhita before looking past him to the other commander. "Shall we, Hiruta-san?"

The scarred man glanced at his comrades when his name was mentioned, arms folding across his chest as he returned his gaze to Minato. "... Let's."

Minato's eyes narrowed when Takao suddenly vanished, leaning back in the nick of time to avoid being slashed by a blade that was concealed beneath the Iwa Jounin's sleeves. The blond drew back into a shunshin to avoid the second attack, pushing off the trunk of a tree to charge back at the commander. Takao's expression never changed at this, only charging at Minato was well with his arm drawing back to the beginning of a thrust. Black-navy pupils narrowed when Minato vanished from his line of sight and instantly felt a sharp yank around his stomach, sending his torso and head to snap forward as he was pulled backwards. Takao saw a yellow blur shoot past where he was once standing and frowned.

"I told you to take it easy, Takao-aniki." Masuhita smirked as he placed his feet back on the ground and released his brother's vest. Takao glanced back at his younger brother, the corner of his mouth twitching before he fixed his vest.

"Thank you. I clearly underestimated the kid's speed." Takao only murmured. He turned his gaze back to the blond when Minato reappeared.

Minato gritted his teeth. _I almost had him...! _His grip tightened around the kunai. He turned his head cautiously to glance back at the rest of the Konoha platoon, sensing the unease coming from most of them. Minato couldn't really blame them. There were at least one hundred Iwa ninja before them, and that included the three commanders. And there were only a couple platoons worth of Konoha ninja.

What was he supposed to do?!

"Everyone, be wary when attacking the blond." Masuhita called over his shoulder. "He can kill you in an instant if you're not careful. Stay well away from most kunai if you can. That's what he uses."

"Shit..." Minato cursed under his breath. He slid his footing so that he moved backwards a bit, his knuckles turning white from the death grip on the kunai. The blond could feel the blood drain from his face and felt a hollow feeling in his chest as Masuhita raised a hand with a smirk plastered on his face. His eyes widened and he backed up, a pang of fear hitting his heart when Masuhita brought his hand down.

Instantly the Iwa ninja darted forward, a few of them staying back to conjure Dotons. They all shot past Masuhita, Takao and Hiruta, their gazes and focus locked on the pathetic Konoha defense before them.

For a second, Minato was frozen on the spot. He found himself unable to move his body despite his mind inwardly screaming at him to.

"Don't just stand there, idiots!! Do something so at least you don't die just standing around like ducks, dattebayo!!"

Kushina's yell managed to snap Minato out of his frozen state, and he lashed out with his kunai just in time to open a wound on a man's forearm. He spun around and kicked the same man in the stomach to send him back. Minato used a shunshin to move backwards, but it was pretty pointless seeing as the Iwa ninja continued to advance on them.

Kushina gritted her teeth from where he stood with the rest of the Konoha ninja, watching as the Iwa's were advancing. She glared down at her bandaged forearms and ignored the flaring pain when she raised her arms, making a hand seal for a Bunshin. She felt her chakra divide evenly with it and scowled, but glanced over at the Uchiha when he stared another Katon attack. The kunoichi smirked. _That's right... melt the snow so I can make a Suiton._

"A combined one, alright?" Daylian growled as he placed his hand on Kushina's shoulder, his violet gaze glaring at the advancing army. Kushina blinked and looked up at him, wondering when he changed back to his natural form. She shook her head and regarded this, keeping her hands raised to make a seal. As soon as the Katon died out and left numerous puddles of water on the ground, the two tightened their hand seals

"Suiton: Mizu Dageki!!"

The two were rather limited to a small list on their arsenal of Suiton attacks. They were provided with nothing more than several puddles of melted snow, nothing massive like a pond that could make a Suiton with massive damage. The most they could probably do with this jutsu was open a few gashes and maybe break bones if they were lucky enough.

"This isn't working... There's just too much of them..." Daylian hissed under his breath, parting his feet slightly as he tightened his hand seal further. The whips of water struck at another Iwa Jounin, sending his head snapping to the side. The man turned his head back and ignored the lines of blood that trailed down his face from a new cut on his cheek, his hands clasping in a seal.

Kushina and Daylian's pupils narrowed at this, and instinctively they turned and darted in separate directions, barely avoiding the stalagmite that erupted from the ground in an attempt to stab either of them.

Minato glanced over his shoulder as he felt the large spike of chakra, and felt himself paling again. He looked up when a shadow was casted around him. Takao's arms were crossed as he fell towards the blond, eyes glaring over the sleeves of his shirt, readying the hidden blades beneath the clothing. Takao immediately lashed out at the blond, whom blocked with a kunai in each hand. Minato flinched when he felt a familiar chakra spike coming from behind and snapped his head to look over his shoulder, catching a glimpse of Masuhita lashing out at him.

Masuhita was coming close to striking the blond in the head, but his arm was held back by a stick material. He scowled darkly and tugged on his arm then growled when he felt his limb wouldn't come loose. Masuhita looked over his shoulder at this, eyes widening when he found that it was a long tongue.

"Namikaze-senpai!!" Gamaeda's voice was barely audible over the chaos of the battles. He stood atop another toad, whose mouth was open and tongue around Masuhita's forearm to prevent him from moving. Takao's eyes widened for a brief moment, but he quickly drew his blades back and jumped back several paces away from Minato.

"Geezus... there's a hundred of 'em..." Jiraiya growled from where he stood atop the larger toad's back, arms folded while black eyes glared at the chaotic battle. Minato quickly recollected himself, stiffening for a second when he remembered that Masuhita was still behind him. The blond disappeared in a shunshin to appear besides the orange-hued frog, looking up at his sensei.

"Sensei... Gamaeda..." Minato paused for a second and looked over his shoulder in time to see a Hyuuga approaching him.

"Hai... The reinforcements have arrived, Namikaze-san." Hyuuga Hizashi murmured.

"About freaking time, 'tebayo!!" Kushina's yell was audible from somewhere in the battle. Almost as soon as Jiraiya had first appeared, a large wave of Konoha ninja darted into the battle to aid the remainder of their comrades, instantly joining the battle. The Iwa ninja were clearly startled at the sudden arrival and were being pushed back, if slowly.

"Che..." Masuhita scowled and swiftly drew a kunai with his left hand, swiftly lashing at the toad's tongue. It responded by screeching and then withdrawing his tongue into his mouth, head lowering at the pulsating pain. Masuhita didn't even bother to look at the toad's reaction and darted back to join the rest of the Iwa ninja, kicking at a few Konoha Jounin as he passed and then jumping up to land on the Doton rock he had made earlier.

"Enough!!" He snarled loudly, feeling his throat hurt at the high volume of his voice. Almost unnaturally the fighting of the Iwa ninja stopped, and the Konoha ninja receded to join the rest of their comrades.

Takao appeared on a tree branch next to his younger brother, while Hiruta just stood besides the rock Masuhita was on. Jiraiya frowned at this and jumped down from the toad, allowing him and Gamaeda to return to their home land. Masuhita stared down at the Gama Sennin, ignoring the odd feeling around his forearm where the toad's tongue once was.

"Che... backup came pretty quickly, didn't it?" The brown-haired Jounin commented with a light sneer. His gaze flickered to Minato for a moment then quickly shot back to Jiraiya when the Sennin responded.

"We're not just going to let you win this war so easily, you know." Jiraiya growled through his teeth. Masuhita snorted softly.

"And you think we're just going to retreat after coming so far? You Konoha ninja should prepare yourselves more- here we are, standing near the very heart of the Hi no Kuni!!"

"Don't forget that you're in Konoha territory now." Jiraiya paused a bit to snort as well. "Don't get so confident... we still have thousands of ninja that are able to come and aid this battle. Your backup would take another couple of days to arrive. And by that point. Well, you're dead, basically."

Masuhita couldn't stop himself from chuckling, soon turning into laughter before dying down into snickers. "Hehehe... you're right. Absolutely right, Jiraiya of the Densetsu no Sannin!! Which is why I have a small proposition for you..."

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **... I thought I'd give it a small twist by giving Minato a rival that's outside of the village. I've seen most people having him rival up with Fugaku. Ehh... I guess Fugaku could be a good rival for Minato in a way... Buuut... This way seems more fun. xD

But! Beyond that, I should apologize for the late update.. I've just been busy with real-life work.. as well as several distractions. Then there was the research I had to do after overlooking some small but vital information to the fic.. x.x' Geezus...

I will promise you guys that there will be fluff in the next chapter. D: I tried my best to squeeze it into this chapter... but in the end, I got too carried away with the action. u.u' What can I say...? I love action. But there will definitely be fluff in the next chapter! x.x For sure!


	20. Alive

**Chapter XX: Alive**

"A proposition?" Jiraiya repeated in a growl as he glared up at Masuhita. The Iwa Jounin dipped his head into a single nod, his expression unreadable as he stared down at the white-haired Sannin. All of the fighting seemed ceased at the second, each side glaring unblinkingly at each other much like Jiraiya and Masuhita. The air was heavy with tension, a fact that was probably unnerving to some of the inexperienced ninja.

Minato glanced around at his fellows beside him before returning his gaze back to Masuhita. The Iwa Jounin's gaze met the blond's for a brief second, and then the gaze was torn away as Masuhita looked back at Jiraiya.

"That's right... to make the fight more even..."

Minato frowned. What was that just now? A light sneer? His eyes narrowed instantly and he spun around. "Watch out!!"

His warning came a second late. As soon as he finished yelling out the two words, the ground exploded and sent several ninjas flying into the air and trees. Everyone else instantly scattered and turned to attack the Iwa army, who in turn engaged into the battle.

Total chaos reigned as several different jutsu were sent flying all over with various weapons among them. Due to the reinforcements, there were also different elementals and genjutsu that got added into the brawl. Everyone was holding their own and fighting relentlessly; After all, it was kill or be killed.

"You Konoha ninja are too soft, you know that?!" Minato could hear Masuhita's snide yell over the battles, which was rather surprising due to all the war cries and agonizing yells of those who didn't react quickly enough. Minato turned his head to search for Masuhita, but instead caught sight of a Doton boulder that was thrown at his direction. Panic shot through him for a brief second, but the next instant he was on a tree branch high above the ground, looking down at the boulder as it crashed into the ground, bringing down a couple of Konoha ninja with it.

The blond's instincts shot his blue gaze diagonally to his right, and he abandoned the branch when a stalagmite shot up the tree in an attempt to stab him.

_This is crazy!! _Minato thought as he darted through the trees, crouching to pick up more speed. He barely dodges stray weapons as he travelled limb by limb, growling as his eyes flickered back to the battle. The blond landed on one branch, not even minding the fact that the leaves rustled and the branch bended slightly beneath his weight. He barely wasted any time, drawing several kunais and wrapping the seal formulas for Hiraishin onto the handles. He carefully bit onto the handle of the first kunai, eyes cold as he swiftly wrapped the seals around the weapons. For now, Minato would only have to ignore the light weight of the basic ninja kunai. It wasn't time to worry about polishing his jutsu.

His blue gaze swept across the battlefield and analyzed the situation. It seemed like both sides were struggling to push the other backwards. Minato growled and darted through the branches, instantly slashing at the neck of an unsuspecting Iwa ninja. The man instantly crumpled, unable to yell out due to the gash in his throat. Minato was already moving onto the next opponent, dodging all Doton jutsus possible.

It was rather hard for Minato to refrain from looking around the battle. He wanted to know how everyone was doing and if they were injured or not. Though he worried mostly about Kushina, honestly.

Instinct brought Minato back to reality and he spun around with his kunai raised to knock away a few shuriken that were flung randomly. He squinted when a sudden gust of wind came. _A Fuuton...?_ He thought gingerly. His eyes snapped open despite the gusting wind, spinning around to kick at the man.

Takao leaned back so that the kick just missed his chin, flipping backwards and easily avoiding the stray weapons and attacks. His expression was unreadable apart from a slight frown, and Minato couldn't tell what he was thinking. The blond placed his foot back on the ground and parted them slightly, kunais held in both hand as well as one in his mouth.

Takao pulled his sleeve up slightly to show the hidden blades that were strapped down to his forearms. He curled his fingers to make single-handed seals in unison, navy-black eyes fixated on Minato's blue ones. The Iwa commander tore his gaze away a second later and lashed out at the air with his arm, sending gusts of wind in the direction of the Katon attack that was blazing towards him.

"Che..." Jiraiya scowled from where he stood, his feet parted and his hand slowly moving away from his mouth after releasing the Katon.

Takao straightened himself, his arms lowering down to his sides and his head turned in Jiraiya's direction. He looked rather calm, despite about to face a Sannin in battle. The two stared each other down, pupils narrowing slowly as the tension grew. A split second later, they disappeared from where they stood and darted at each other with astonishing speed, sparks flying into the air when metal clashed.

Minato wanted to watch his sensei in battle, but he had to focus on the battle. He had turned and disappeared the moment Takao had countered Jiraiya's Katon. Minato wanted to find Kushina, but it was rather hard to since every time he turned around, he'd be attacked by either weapons or a Doton attack. It was honestly starting to annoy him.

As the blond was turning around to face another Jounin, a whip of water shot past him, barely skimming the side of his head.

"Oops. Sorry there, Minato.. You appeared suddenly, y'know?" Daylian growled from above, couching on a tree branch with both hands clasped into seals. Kushina pressed herself against the trunk of the same tree, as if trying to conceal herself from the fight with her own hands performing the same sign as Daylian.

Minato's shoulders dropped in relief when he caught sight of the kunoichi, exchanging a small smile with her. Kushina blinked at this, returning the smile shyly before her eyes narrowed.

"Watch it!" Kushina hissed as she drew a kunai, snapping her wrist to send the weapon flying. Minato whirled around as he caught the knife, catching the short Jounin in the eye with it. The blond could feel his stomach churn at all the blood as well as the agonizing yell the Iwa Jounin gave out. Not wanting to see any more, Minato spun a bit and kicked the enemy in the chest to send him backwards, straight into a sharp Doton jutsu that was meant for another Konoha nin.

Kushina covered her mouth with one hand when she felt nausea coming up from her stomach, and jumped a bit when Daylian growled at her.

"Hey, don't lose focus! You can throw up later!!"

"Easy for you to say.." Kushina mumbled through her gloved hand. But she forced herself to swallow a few times and stuck her tongue out as she resumed the hand seal. A look of disappointment crossed her face when she saw that Minato had darted off into the chaos of the battle again, but shook her head and tried to focus on the combined Suiton.

Kushina's gaze flickered to the left when she saw another Katon fired, and make a couple of hand seals to manipulate the water that was left behind after the snow was melted. She pulled her hands apart and kept one of them in a seal, flicking her hands in the direction of the other water whip that Daylian was controlling. The black-haired nin growled a quick thanks over his shoulder and then returned his focus onto the battle. Kushina dipped her head in a nod at his thanks and folded her fingers to form the ox seal to support the Suiton.

A small flare of chakra behind her made Kushina turn her head to look over her shoulder, and her eyes instantly narrowed. Without warning she took a small fragment of the water whip- ignoring Daylian's yell of protest -and spun around to lash out at the Iwa ninja with it. The Jounin only smirked and tightened his own hand seal. A second after the Suiton whip was countered with a Doton spearing through it, shattering the jutsu.

"Shit..!?" Kushina took a half-step back before she was knocked to the ground by the slim Doton rock, nearly blacking out when her head hit the ground roughly. She managed to stay conscious at this and looked up, eyes widening when she saw that the Iwa Jounin was wrapped with countless snakes. One of the snakes flitted its tongue, ignoring the rest of the battles as well as the kunoichi on the ground as it made way around the man's neck. In a jerking movement and a sickening snap, the man fell onto his side, and the remaining snakes slithered off.

Kushina shuddered at the sight of the snakes, sighing in relief when they all slithered in unison towards one direction.

"Worthless girl. Go back to the village if you're going to sit on the ground like that." Orochimaru muttered. The snakes merged into a much larger one and slithered up the Sannin's body, most of its body coiling around Orochimaru's waist and torso.

Kushina tried to keep herself from shuddering, but failed. The snakes were one thing, but this guy... he was dead white! And the way his gold eyes glared down at her gave Kushina a scared feeling in the pit of her chest.

"Oi, 'Shina! Get back up; we're still in the middle of a battle!" Daylian's growl managed to shake the red-head out of her frozen state, then nodded and got up to her feet, her gaze unnaturally locked with Orochimaru's. She shuddered a bit and quickly turned around, much preferring being in a large-scale battle than be in Orochimaru's presence.

A few seconds after she regrouped with Daylian, Kushina glanced over her shoulder. The Hebi Sennin was no longer there, much to her relief. Now she could focus on the battle.

As the kunoichi turned to look forward again, a sharpened Doton shot towards them. Kushina's pupils narrowed and she quickly clasped her hands together, summoning all the water to create a wall. The spear-like earth only shot through the barrier, sending the water splattering to the ground. The kunoichi quickly rolled out of the way, lowered onto one knee and watching as the Doton shot right through a tree, sending it crashing down.

"Che..." Daylian spat from where he appeared a few paces away from Kushina, violet eyes shooting around the battlefield in search of the user. It was really hard, considering that just about everyone in the Iwa army knew Doton attacks.

"Over here."

Daylian's pupils narrowed instantly and he jerked around, just in time to get roughly punched. He skidded backwards and fell to the ground, growling as he sat up and spitting out the blood that filled his mouth.

"Nii-san!!" Kushina barked. She was tempted to see where he was, but she kept her gaze on attacker with her teeth gritting.

Hiruta straightened himself and cracked his scarred knuckles. His only eye was more fixated on Daylian than Kushina, as if waiting for him to get up. "Well? On your feet... I'll show you what happens to those who attempt Suiton against me..."

"Ch..." Daylian scowled at this and slowly got up to his feet while rubbing his cheek with the back of his hand. _We're at a disadvantage..._

"Think you're so big, huh?! Don't think we're just gonna get pushed over, fat ass!!" Kushina snarled as she placed her hands into a seal. Hiruta remained where he was, his emotionless, one-eyed gaze sliding around the area to see the water gathering up again. The Iwa Jounin only proceeded to raise his right hand in a seal.

The sharpened Doton attack shifted and dislodged itself from the fallen tree, thinning slightly before it lashed out at the bits of water that were slowly being gathered by the kunoichi. In ragged movements the blobs of water were instantly scattered again, before the moving earth aimed itself at the kunoichi herself.

Kushina's eyes widened at this and she quickly dodged it, placing her hands in another set of seals to try and conjure whatever amount of water that remained.

"Don't, 'Shina!" Daylian barked. Kushina froze from where she stood, but snapped out of it to move in a shunshin to avoid another Doton attack. In swift movements, she flickered into a couple of more shunshins and landed besides her brother-by-law.

"What?" She growled to him with her gaze fixated on Hiruta.

"We're at a disadvantage here, dummy. We always did have a disadvantage, but this guy..."

Hiruta looked genuinely bored. He turned his head so that he could look over at the Doton jutsu with his good eye. His hand clenched in a seal and it soon shifted to life once more, guided by chakra as it lashed out at Daylian.

"I'll kill you two and move on. Hopefully there's someone actually worth fighting in this mess." Hiruta commented under his breath.

The two former Uzu nins disappeared from the Doton's path, appearing in the trees above the Iwa commander. Daylian gritted his teeth. _What're we supposed to do? _He thought to himself, turning his head to cast a wary glance in Kushina's direction. The kunoichi growled as she crouched on a branch, concealed by the snow-covered branches while her own set of eyes glared down at Hiruta.

The two tensed suddenly when the commander slowly turned his one-eyed gaze upwards. Seconds after the trees they were in collapsed, causing them to jump to another branch and disappear further into the battlefield. Kushina growled as she silently followed Daylian, keeping him in her line of sight as she flickered after him. _Again..._

"Holy effin'-!!" Daylian yelled as he instantly spun around, shooting past the red-haired kunoichi and grabbing hold of her shirt to pull her backwards.

"?!" Kushina gagged a bit when the collar of her shirt nearly strangled her, glaring over her shoulder. She was about to snap a protest, but the trees before her flattened beneath the enormous weight of the reptile. The kunoichi slowly trailed her gaze upwards and visibly paled at the sight of the large snake.

The snake gave no regards to the Konoha ninja, only lashing its tail out at the landscape and killing whatever was unfortunate enough to be in its path. Trees, Iwa ninja, even Konoha ninja.

Daylian scowled as he casted a glare over his shoulder. He raised his free hand in a seal and forced the chakra down to his feet to pick up the pace, clearly not entertaining the thought of death by a snake's tail. His grip tightened on the back of Kushina's shirt as he increased his speed

Kushina shivered lightly and shook her head, trying to turn her attention away from the snake despite the fact that it would seem impossible to do so. She felt Daylian's grip on her shirt loosen once they got a fairly good distance away from the giant summoning animal. They both landed on the ground, but Kushina stumbled slightly since she was backwards. Daylian only supported her while his violet gaze kept an eye on the snake's range.

The red-haired kunoichi couldn't stop herself from looking in the same direction. Her eyes narrowed and she spun around, raising her leg to instinctively kick out at the Iwa ninja.

Hiruta caught her foot and tightly gripped it. Due to Kushina's small size he was easily able to lift her off the ground and violently throw her. Kushina hit a tree rather roughly, the wind knocked out of her lungs as well as some blood to go with it. Groaning, Kushina collapsed to the ground and lay there, cringing from the pounding pain going through her body.

Kushina's eyes kept threatening to close on her, black already beginning to rim her vision. She scowled and then cringed, trying to force herself back on her feet. Her head spun dizzily and she flopped back onto the ground with a grunt, wheezing to try and breath.

_... up... Get up!!_Kushina snarled repeatedly to herself. Her fingers curled into fists, picking up a bit of snow and dirt as she did. Gritting her teeth and keeping her eyes closed, Kushina slowly pushed herself upright, pausing to spit out a bit of blood. She opened her eyes and dizzily stared at her fists below her, then gritted her teeth and forced herself to balance on one foot, and then the other.

She did the best she could to ignore the pulsating pain, and couldn't suppress a few shudders. Kushina squeezed an eye shut and raised her gaze upwards.

Daylian was standing with his back to her, arms outstretched to his sides as if trying to prevent Hiruta from reaching the kunoichi. He swayed slightly on his feet, and his head lowered for a second.

Kushina's gaze slowly wavered downwards, and then noticed the puddles of water at Daylian's feet. She dozed for a second and considered the thought of Daylian managing to spit out some water for a Suiton. The kunoichi blinked in confusion when some of her hair went flying forward by a gust of wind from behind her. Kushina turned her head to look over her shoulder, squinting when the Fuuton attacks continued to gust past her.

The red-haired kunoichi's mouth twitched for a second, and then her gaze snapped back in Daylian's direction when she heard a snarl of pain.

Daylian groaned and rolled off the Doton boulder that protruded from the ground, landing in a heap of snow and water and lying there for several seconds. The black-haired nin stirred after a while and slowly pushed himself up, coughing a bit and scowling when he felt blood trail down from his back. Cringing, Daylian shifted and slouched heavily while kneeling in the snow and water. He raised his hands shakily in a set of seals, tightening his hands on the last one and stifling a wince.

The puddles of water around him shifted and came to life for a second before splattering back down to the ground. Daylian's violet eyes narrowed at this and he frowned, paying no heed to the gusts of wind as he glared down at his hands. _Dammit..._

The black-haired nin stiffened when he saw the water slipping away from beneath him, then turned his head slightly to follow the path it was taking. His gaze caught sight of Kushina for a second, whom crouched with her own hands clasped in a seal. Daylian frowned slightly and then nodded. He looked up when he sensed Hiruta towering over him, the Iwa Jounin's hand raised to chest level in a hand sign.

"So all you two can really do is run away, hm? Disappointing... Even if you two weren't such cowards, you would have been killed anyway." Hiruta murmured as he tightened the one-handed seal.

Instantly, a larger gust of wind came and Hiruta was suddenly knocked backwards with speckles of blood flying into the air. The Iwa commander coughed when he landed flatly on his back, scowling when he felt blood roll down his closed eye. He slowly raised his head to get a look at whatever weapons stabbed him in multiple areas of his torso. Hiruta's eyes narrowed.

_Ice...!?_

Kushina herself looked rather surprised at this but grinned widely, ignoring the continuous Fuuton attacks from behind.

"Well, I don't know what just happened, but I'm sure I'll get you right through the skull if you try an' insult us again, 'tebayo!!" Kushina barked as Hiruta struggled to get back up.

The scarred Iwa Jounin scowled darkly and grabbed hold of one of the icicles, roughly yanking it out of his shoulder and tossing it aside. Once the icicle left his hand, Kushina tightened her seal, frowning in disappointment when she saw that it didn't come to life. Her eyes flickered to her right when some more wind came.

"So that's what you did..." Daylian muttered as he limped towards her, ignoring the fact that he was leaving behind some blood trails. Kushina's eyes shot down to the red-painted snow and tensed.

"Nii-san-"

She was interrupted when the ground shook violently. Kushina would have been knocked off her feet if she didn't place her hands on the tree for support. Daylian barely managed to stay upright, scowling when the quake ceased. He turned his gaze in one direction and growled in the direction of the large summoning animals that were visible through the trees and snow. The war cries continued as well as the agonizing wails of unfortunate ones.

The two former Uzu nin tensed when a chakra flare suddenly shot towards them.

Kushina turned around to react but was instantly toppled over by a familiar blond that was sent flying from a counter attack. Minato grunted as he rolled a bit in the snow, cringing as he tried to get up. He shook his head wildly to rid his hair of the snow as well as to try and shake off the dizziness. His mouth dropped open slightly at the sight of the kunoichi as she groaned and dizzily got to her own feet.

"Kushina-"

He was sharply cut off when Daylian yanked Kushina by the back of her clothing, barely pulling her out of the way of Takao's blade. Minato's eyes narrowed and he instinctively rolled out of the way, flinging a kunai in the Iwa Jounin's direction as he did. The blond kicked up some snow as he disappeared, the knife in his grasp a moment later and lashed out at Takao.

Takao turned his head to look over his shoulder, getting slashed on his arm before he flipped and disappeared in a blur. Both Jounins panted lightly as they glared at each other from the distance between them. Takao's gaze eventually flickered to the left, as if finally taking notice of Hiruta trying to pull all the icicle shards from his open wounds.

"... Hiruta-san..."

"What, you can't get rid of this one kid?" Hiruta growled as he got to his feet, pulling out one of the last few shards and discarding it. Takao's eyes narrowed for a second as he felt provoked by his own comrade, but forced himself to calm down.

"... And yourself? You only seem to be in battle with these two... everyone else is killing each other while you're getting pushed around."

Hiruta was about to growl another snide remark, but the ear-splitting hiss of the summoning snake cut him off. The trees around them became uprooted a second later, making everyone in the area duck and cover their heads protectively.

Alot of the trees were knocked down so that the fragment of the country seemed like a wasteland of dead trees. Three large summoning animals were visible; The snake from earlier, a toad about the same size, as well as a slug. The snake continued to lash out with its tail violently, simply swatting away any Iwa Jounin that tried to oppose it.

"Shit.. all three of the Sannin are here..." Hiruta hissed under his breath.

"I know." Takao only replied simply as he turned his gaze back to Minato. "I fought one of them earlier... Half of our ninja won't last too long against them.."

"That's why we're going to retreat for now."

The two commanders slid their gazes upwards when Masuhita spoke. The Iwa Jounin landed on a tree branch and only regarded their looks by turning his head to look over his shoulder. The Konoha ninja below him slowly followed his gaze and cautiously took a step back. Several Iwa ninja were darted through the dying forest, ducking into the cover of whatever trees that remained upright.

Minato bristled slightly at this and was about to dart forward, but a large Doton wall shot up from the ground and nearly caused him to run right into it. He moved back, scowling at the height of it. The blond was about to run up it, when a yell stopped him.

"That's enough, Minato! We'll push 'em back from here!!"

Jiraiya jumped down from atop the toad's head, easily landing atop the earth wall and watching as his summoning animal disappeared. He glanced over his shoulder, his gaze flickering to some of the uninjured Konoha ninja that had gathered to pursue the Iwa army.

"You guys rest for now. We've got them on defense so all we have to do is just keep pushing them back out of the country. Tsunade-hime'll tend to everyone's wounds." Jiraiya ordered over his shoulder. Minato frowned slightly but glanced back to assess the remaining Konoha ninja.

Most of them seemed to be in pretty good condition, just dusty. There were few that were panting heavily and slouching, trying to stop their wounds from bleeding so much. His blue gaze eventually trailed to Daylian, who was heavily slouching as he frowned in the direction of the Doton wall with his eyes blank, as if thinking.

"Jiraiya, Orochimaru and the others'll handle it... you kids need to rest." Tsunade muttered as she came up behind him. Minato looked at her then finally dropped his shoulders in defeat.

"Alright... Whosoever good to fight, let's go!" Jiraiya called back, before he disappeared over the other side of the Doton wall. Several platoons worth of Konoha ninja crouched slightly and then disappeared in blurs to jump over the other side and join two of the Sannins.

The air was tense for several seconds, and then a few Konoha ninja collapsed and the tension was broken.

"Whosoever about to die, line up." Tsunade growled.

"That's you, nii-san." Kushina snorted as she looked up at the black-haired nin. Daylian didn't seem to take notice, only narrowing his eyes and frowning deeply as he continued to think.

_Did I just see a blue-haired Iwa ninja...? And there's something about the vague scent that guy gave off..._

"Hello? Daylian-nii-san, report back to the world." Kushina stated as she waved her gloved hands in front of the older ninja's eyes. Daylian blinked at this and finally snapped out of his thoughts, turning his head to look down at her and then Minato, who was also staring at him with concern.

"Uh. Right..." Daylian murmured, dazedly looking back and forth between the two before he stumbled over to Tsunade.

* * *

The Konoha ninja moved at a rather steady pace, making sure to prepare themselves thoroughly as they slowly approached the border of the Hi no Kuni. Tsunade, of course, had healed the worse of the injuries, but also sent a few Konoha ninja back to the village to remove them from the battles as well as to report the current war situation to the Sandaime Hokage.

"Are you sure you shouldn't be heading back to the village with the others?" Tsunade questioned as she fell in step with the Ino-Shika-Cho threesome. Chouza was supported Shikaku, whose head was bandaged to stop a wound on the right side of his head from bleeding. It was a rather deep cut and most likely turn into a scar in the future.

"Leave me alone, would you?" Shikaku only growled. _Naggin' woman._ He added inwardly.

Inoichi sighed and caught up with his teammates as well as the sole kunoichi of the Sannin. "We're formidable as a team, Tsunade-sama... Sending one back would send the whole team out of sync..."

Tsunade only rolled her eyes and snorted, slowing her pace to check up on some other Konoha ninja that were loping behind with the ones who carried the supplies.

Minato glanced back at them then sighed softly. He himself didn't sustain any injuries, aside from a few scratches that Takao managed to knick him with. Minato's mouth twitched at the thought of facing Masuhita's _brother_rather than Masuhita himself. Just where was the other Jounin during the battle anyway?

While the blond was thinking and unconsciously following Tsume and Kuromaru, he raised his hand to sip some water that the backup had provided. He blinked when he realized the bamboo canteen was empty and sighed a bit, lowering his hand down to his side.

"Out of water, Namikaze-san?" Hizashi questioned from along side of him.

"Mm? Uh, yeah..." Minato nodded in response to the Hyuuga before glancing down at his empty canteen again.

"We're out of water back here, Hyuuga-san!!" A Konoha ninja called several paces back, waving his own canteen above his head. Hizashi's mouth cocked into a slight half-frown, before he sighed.

"I'll locate a body of water, then..." He murmured. Raising his hands in a set of seals and tightening the last one, veins appeared along Hizashi's temples as the Byakugan activated.

Silence fell among the platoons of Konoha ninja as the Hyuuga searched for the nearest source of water, white-gray eyes staring ahead unblinkingly. After several seconds the veins receded and his eyesight returned to normal.

"Give me all the empty canteens... I'll go refill them.."

"Hey, you can't just leave, y'know." Tsume growled over her shoulder. Kuromaru grunted from where he was also leading the Konoha platoons. "We need your eyes to make sure we're actually going the right place... We're barely following the scents.. they keep going in all kinds of different directions."

"..." Hizashi fell silent at Tsume, his expression unreadable. Minato shifted on his feet and glanced down at his canteen.

"... I can go fill them up, Hizashi-san. It shouldn't take too long- I'll be able to catch up." Minato offered a few seconds after. "Just tell me where the stream is and I can go."

"Stream?" Kushina wasn't really listening to the conversation until now, only thinking of how she managed to conjure the ice jutsu earlier. She turned her head and looked over at Minato, as if clearly interested in the mention of a stream.

Minato blinked when he caught her gaze and smiled lightly. He quickly caught a canteen that was thrown at him, using the small strap attached to slide it onto his arm whilst he caught a few more that were thrown his way.

"There should be a stream about... two kilometers north." Hizashi murmured as he raised his hand to point off to their right. His right hand flicked slightly to toss something at Minato, which he promptly caught.

The blond dipped his head into a nod and proceeded to placing the wireless communicator around his neck, placing the piece in his ear. Minato flickered his gaze back to Kushina for a second. _I'll be back in a bit._He mouthed, before he turned and disappeared in a blur. Kushina blinked and shuffled her feet slightly before bending her knees.

"Wait, if there's a stream, I'm comin'!" She barked before disappearing after him.

"Oi, 'Shina, where're you-?" Daylian was about to give chase after her, but the collar of his jacket was grabbed and he was yanked backwards by Tsunade.

"Just let 'em go. I'm sure they won't fool around long or anything."

"Wait, what?! That's even more of a reason for me to go after them!"

"You're lucky I'm not sending you back to the village. I'm leader here so follow my orders. Let's keep goin', chibi and whatever her name is will catch up in a bit."

* * *

"Aww man..!" Kushina whined as she took hold of her scarf, disappointment and shock clearly etched on her face when she saw that it was torn a bit. Minato blinked and glanced over at her, his head tilting when he saw the kunoichi beginning to tug the scarf off.

"Aren't you going to be cold...?" Minato questioned while his blue gaze flickered downwards. Her arms were now properly bandaged instead of using strips of what used to be the sleeves of her shirt. Kushina paused at this and slowly trailed her gaze down to her shoulders, as if remembering that they were nearly exposed.

"... Err..." The kunoichi sighed and redid her scarf, suddenly feeling the cold effects the snowy weather. Her gaze trailed down to her half-exposed arms and sighed at the torn sleeves, silently noting herself to apologize to Sae once they returned to the village.

"This way, Kushina.." Minato murmured. Kushina nodded at this and took a bigger jump onto the next tree branch so that she fell in step with him. The two glanced at each other several times and exchanged shy smiles. There was silence among the two, so Kushina's thoughts eventually trailed off.

Since she had made a mental note to apologize to Sae, Kushina's thinking was mostly about the blond florist. The red-haired kunoichi was deadpanning slightly as she thought, unconsciously following Minato north. After a while when her thinking branched off slightly, her eyes widened; Having recalled the conversation she had with Sae and Mikoto before Kushina ran off to join the battle.

_Oh my _freaking_ god, and I'm alone with him, too..._Kushina's gaze timidly trailed over to the blond, catching his gaze for a second and instantly looking away in embarrassment.

Minato blinked when she looked away, clearly confused by the response before he stifled a shrug and smiled lightly, finding her flustered manner cute in a way.

Kushina looked at him from the corner of her eyes. Her cheeks were warm and she was no longer concerned about the low temperature of the air. _I mean... yeah, I _want _to, 'tebayo... But..._

"Kushina...?"

The aforementioned kunoichi jumped when the blond suddenly took hold of her hand, clearly startled by the fact itself and that his hand was also a bit cold. Minato jumped a bit as well and looked at her with a startled expression as he halted on a thick tree branch.

"Uh, err... Sorry. Kinda dozin'..." Kushina mumbled in embarrassment. Minato tilted his head to the side slightly before he chuckled.

"I can tell..." Minato chuckled slightly. "You were kinda straying off to the left while you were thinking... Come on, the stream's this way."

"Right." Kushina's eyes lit up slightly at the mention of the stream, allowing Minato to lead with their hands still clasped. After about of minute of constant Shunshin flight, Minato's pace began slowing. He jumped down from the trees while pulling Kushina along with him, releasing her hand slowly when the forest cleared slightly to reveal a stream that was about a few yards long.

Kushina looked at him when he let go of her hand, blushing slightly when she remembered the conversation with Sae. She quickly jumped onto the surface of the stream, naturally standing on it and allowing the slow current to diffract around her feet.

"Man! We should drag the fights over to streams like these! I bet you that Da-nii-san and I could do lotsa damage to those Iwa bastards, dattebayo!!" Kushina growled, partially to herself as she stood with her back facing the blond, still slightly flustered.

_"Have you two reached the stream?" _

The kunoichi turned her head to look over her shoulder, the voice barely audible from where she stood atop the stream. Minato placed his hand on the band around his neck.

"Yeah, we're here, Hizashi-san... We'll refill the canteens and join up with you in a bit."

_"Very good, Namikaze-san."_

Minato nodded and lowered his arm down to his sides, ignoring the slightly-choking feeling he received upon wearing the wireless communication device. He shifted and lowered onto his knee, opening the first canteen to fill up. Blue eyes flickered upwards when the kunoichi approached him, smiling when their gazes met. Minato placed the rest of the canteens on the ground besides them, capping the first one when it was filled up.

Kushina stepped off the stream's surface and onto the land, turning around to kneel down besides him. She took one of the canteens and began filling it up, staring dazedly into the stream of the current as she thought quietly to herself. After a while she unconsciously capped the bottle and then reached for the other one, blinking and looking up when she sensed Minato turn around.

The blond returned her gaze and grinned as he drew a scroll from his pouch. He brushed away from of the snow and then unrolled the scroll on the ground.

"What're you doin', 'tebayo...?" Kushina questioned as he bit into his own thumb to draw blood.

"A favor for you and Daylian-san." Minato replied as he thought for a second. His gaze rolled upwards as he thought, before he grinned and returned his gaze down, reaching out to begin painting runes into the blank scroll. The symbols were completely unfamiliar to Kushina, whom deadpanned as she only watched. She only recognized the kanji for water when Minato painted it in the center of the circle of symbols. Her blank gaze trailed back up to the blond when he made a set of hand seals, his expression of pure concentration.

The water behind him shifted and squirmed upwards, arching over the two and slamming down onto the scroll, spraying them with water from the sloppiness of the jutsu. Kushina jumped back slightly when the water continued to gush downwards, blinking in slight confusion when it ended, the scroll completely dry to her surprise.

"I've never been good at Suiton..." Minato mumbled shamefully to himself as he closed the scroll. He picked it up and then held it out to Kushina whilst his other hand brushed some of the droplets of water from his face.

Kushina blinked in confusion, staring at the scroll for several seconds before she finally took it. She continued to stare at it before it finally started to register. "Oh...!"

Minato grinned when she finally got it, looking up at her for a second before he capped the second canteen. "So that you both can kick some Iwa ninja around. Just make some hand signs for a Suiton and it should come out of the scroll.."

"Thanks.." Kushina kept smiling as she stared down at it. After a while her smile formed into a grin and she pocketed the scroll.

The blond smiled at her response and only nodded as he continued filling the canteens with water, placing the filled ones on the ground besides him. A sigh escaped him and broke the silence when he picked up the final canteen, dipping it into the stream and then lifting it out a few seconds after. He blinked when Kushina timidly placed a hand on his cheek and slowly turned his head towards her. Her fingers were trembling and he could easily feel it.

"Kushina-?" Minato was about to ask. He was cut off when Kushina's mouth touched his, blue eyes widening. Through the sudden shock he told himself to breath, exhaling a couple of times through his nose before he slowly calmed down, eyes closing.

Slowly Kushina pulled away, panting slightly since she forgot to breath. She slowly opened her own eyes, then felt Minato's hand at the back of her neck. The kunoichi was a bit sluggish in registering this, feeling slightly dizzy.

"Mm...!" Kushina was about to protest when Minato pulled her into another kiss, but fell silence shortly when the blond angled his head to deepen the kiss.

After what seemed like several minutes, the two parted and looked at each other with eyes widening. Instantly their faces turned hot and they looked away, embarrassed and shocked by their actions. Though Minato couldn't stop himself from smiling, chuckling softly as he licked his lips. Kushina rubbed her sore cheeks and looked at him, about to ask what he was laughing at.

_"Namikaze-san?"_

The two jumped at the voice, clearly having forgotten just about everything- the canteens, Hizashi, the _war_...

"Uh, um.." Awkwardly, Minato panicked for a second before he remembered how to use the wireless communicator, placing his fingers on the band around his neck. "Uhh. Sorry, Hizashi-san. We'll be leaving to join with you guys now..." He murmured.

_"All right... Just head about.. three kilometers west from your current location. We'll be waiting." _

"H.. Hai..." Minato nodded and mentally hit himself for stuttering, removing his hand from the communicator and flusteredly shaking his head. He shifted his gaze upwards and awkwardly smiled when their gazes met, turning away to look at the canteens and gather them.

"A... ano.." The blond gathered most of the canteens and slung them by the straps onto his forearm, getting to his feet and sniffing a bit. Sheepishly, he held his hand out to Kushina, smiling softly. "Let's.. head on back.."

"Right..." Kushina mumbled softly to herself, her cheeks still visibly red as she picked up the remaining canteens and held them by the straps, not wanting to sling them onto her bandaged arms. She looked up and then took his hand with her free one, easily being pulled up to her feet.

They looked at each other again and in unison smiled sheepishly. Minato tightened his grip on her hand carefully.

"Let's go.." He murmured. Kushina slowly nodded, feeling a bit tired as she started grinning. Minato could feel his heart skip a beat at this, before he returned the grin with a sheepish one of his own. He tugged on her hand and then adjusted his footing, pulling her into a shunshin a couple seconds after.

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **_Finally_I finished this chapter!! Gawd! Dx I'm sorry it took so long! But it was the last weeks of school so of course, I've been busy... Last-second projects (or rather, project. Thanks, Mr. Mickelson.. u.u'), homework... writer's block... D:

Well my freshman year went by pretty fast. o.O' Let's just hope that I can actually wrap this fic up before I'm like a junior or anything. Dx' Gah. Gah. Gah. Gah. Summer. I hate summer. It's too hot!  
-looks around- Okay, okay, okay.. I know.. The kiss.. xD' I'm not good at writing fluff.. since it's still a bit awkward for me to write about. Practice makes perfect.. o.o' Okay..

I blame character development. -book'd-


	21. One Night Star

**Chapter XXI: One Night Star**

"It's about time you caught up, chibi." Was the first greeting that Minato and Kushina received upon regrouping with the rest of the Konoha platoons. Hizashi was only staring at the two silently before he turned his head to look up slightly at the blond kunoichi when she shifted besides him.

"How much further 'til we reach Kusa's borders?" Tsunade questioned as she folded her arms.

"Only an hour of traveling... It's a bit out of my range, but I can see some chakra within Kusa's boundaries... The fight is being held there." Hizashi reported.

Tsunade nodded at this, turning her honey-colored gaze back to the rest of them. "Alright. We're going to rest for a bit to heal up the rest of the wounds and get some bites to eat. Then we're going to go into the Kusa no Kuni and sneak a night attack on Iwa."

Several sighs of relief floated up into the air, making Tsunade scowl slightly. A lot of the supplies were dropped onto the floor, the Konoha ninja following to the ground shortly to rest themselves. Tsunade sighed and shook her head.

"A couple of you guys keep watch... Who ever's fit enough to do that, go on ahead. People who are still whinin' about their injuries, come over here." Tsunade ordered. "Eat, drink, sleep.. get yourselves ready 'cuz we're leavin' a bit before midnight."

Minato's shoulders dropped and he sighed inaudibly. It was good that they were stopping to rest. Right now he couldn't exactly _concentrate_on anything other than the kiss that he shared with Kushina. He swallowed the lump in his throat and his face turned red seconds after. His blue eyes snapped up when he felt someone tugging at the canteens on his forearms, his gaze meeting white-gray ones.

"I'll hand the water out, Namikaze-san..." Hizashi murmured.

"Uhh.." Minato nodded slightly. For a few seconds he turned his head to search for Kushina, soon finding her standing besides Daylian. The older nin was slouching slightly due to the pain in his back, violet eyes examining the scroll that Minato had drawn up earlier. Minato caught a few words in their conversation, but shook his head and returned his gaze back to the Hyuuga. "I'll help."

Hizashi tilted his head forward at this. But his shoulders rose and fell in a simple shrug as he nodded, relieving Minato of a few canteens. "Alright..."

Minato glanced over at Kushina a second time, before he hurriedly followed Hizashi when he fell behind a few paces. The Hyuuga only calmly handed the canteens back to the ones that had asked for them to be refilled, making Minato wonder how Hizashi even remembered their faces. Minato sighed a bit and shook his head, only handing Hizashi more canteens since the blond himself didn't bother to remember which canteens belonged to whom.

After a while Hizashi took the last canteen from Minato and returned it to its rightful owner. White-gray eyes flickered upwards and at the darkened sky that was obscured slightly by the trees. A lot of the ninja were settling down by now, having made several small fires and being careful not to let the smoke wisp above the treetops. A few of them were already asleep close by the fires, being covered by simple blankets that the backup had brought along with the provisions.

"Here you go, Namikaze-san.." Hizashi murmured, snapping the blond out of his trance. Minato blinked and looked up, dazedly taking the apple that was handed to him.

"Ah... Arigatou..." Minato murmured as he sat down, a few paces away from the closest fire.

"... I didn't know that you were dating someone."

"Eh?!" Minato was instantly snapped out of his thoughts again, blue eyes shooting to the Hyuuga. Hizashi tilted his head forward in a curious manner as he sat down across from Minato, as if deciding to keep him coming while interrogating him.

"No... Well, yes, but..." Minato groaned softly and hung his head to hide his reddening face. "How did you find..?"

"Namikaze-san."

Minato looked up the call, and Hizashi tapped the corner of his eye lightly a couple of times. The Hyuuga gave a small, rare smirk, making Minato's eyes widened.

"You mean you saw..?!" Minato quickly dropped the volume of his voice. Hizashi chuckled softly under his breath at this and lowered his arm back down to his side.

"I didn't mean to intrude... but Tsunade-sama was asking what was taking you guys so long..." Hizashi explained in defense of himself.

"W-wait, does that mean Tsunade-san...?!"

"No, she doesn't, Namikaze-san..." Hizashi chuckled a few more times with a light smile to go with it. "I covered for the both of you... so who is she?"

Minato grumbled softly at this and rubbed his nose in embarrassment. He sighed but shook his head and decided that Hizashi probably didn't get many opportunities to leave the Hyuuga's Estate, so he would just have to fill the Hyuuga in.

"Her name is Uzumaki Kushina..." Minato murmured, pausing to take a bite of the apple that Hizashi had given him earlier. Once he swallowed the mouthful he realized how hungry he was, so he took another couple of bites.

"Uzumaki-san... ka..." Hizashi repeated softly to himself and allowed the blond to eat a little more. Though Hizashi fell silent all together, his thoughts having branched off to another topic while he stared wordlessly at the ground in front of him.

"..." Minato glanced over at his Hyuuga friend when he finished the apple. He flicked his wrist and the core was easily sent flying into the bushes. The rustling of the foliage made several of the shinobi tense for a second before they slowly calmed down and returned to eating their food rations or talking amongst themselves.

Minato himself decided to lie down, not minding the fact that they were camped on barren dirt. Well it was better than sleeping on top of snow. The blond stifled a yawn and folded his arms beneath his head while his blue eyes stared up at the navy-black sky visible through the trees. There weren't really many stars visible, so Minato could only guess that there were still some clouds up in the sky. He sighed and closed his eyes for the time being, trying to remember what the date was.

"... Do you need a blanket, Namikaze-san?"

Minato opened his eyes at this and raised his head slightly from his makeshift pillow. Hizashi was on his feet by this point while his hands brushed the dust off his clothing. The blond's mouth twitched as he paused before he shook his head no.

"I'm fine... I can live off the fire for now."

"Alright..." Hizashi's eyes rolled over the Konoha camp. "... I should probably go get a blanket for Uzumaki-san, hmm?" He smiled teasingly at the blond when he saw that Minato sat up to look for the mentioned kunoichi. Hizashi raised his hand and pointed a couple of fires away.

Kushina was sleeping on her back with the ends of her scarf spread out on either side of her, her arms folded across her stomach while her knees were bent and up in the air in another way of curling up. She was clearly out cold, sleeping with her mouth opened slightly. Daylian was curled up a foot away from her, hogging the warmth of the fire.

"Ah.. uhm..." Minato looked up at Hizashi and instantly lowered his gaze when he saw the smug look.

"There's nothing to be embarrassed about, Namikaze-san..." Hizashi murmured as he turned around. "I'll be seeing if anyone else requires any food or water..."

"..." The blond looked down before he shifted and got up to his feet. He casted wary glances around at the divided groups in the camp and then awkwardly trailed over to Kushina. Minato sat down besides her, cheeks red as he stared down at her. After a while he smiled softly and shifted to lie down on his back, using one arm as a makeshift pillow. He turned his head to look over at her when the kunoichi stirred, then stifled a yawn and closed his eyes.

-

Minato opened his eyes drowsily when he felt something prodding his chest. He lay there for several seconds with his eyes half-open, trying to adjust to the lighting of the night. After a while he saw a pair of violet orbs staring down at him and shifted to sit up.

"Daylian-san...?" Minato asked sleepily. He stretched the arm that he was using as a pillow, wincing when his shoulder and elbow popped.

The black wolf took a few steps back at this, ears cocked forward. "We gotta guard the camp for a little bit..."

"What about Kushina...?" Minato asked as he rubbed his eye and stifled a yawn. He turned his head and looked downwards, finding Kushina curled up in a ball closely besides him. She was still sound asleep with her head resting on her forearm, her side moving up and down slightly with her even breathing.

"Leave her behind... she needs her rest..." Daylian murmured, tossing his head in one direction before padding towards it.

Minato's eyes barely managed to follow the black wolf against the night, then realized that only a couple of fires were still barely lit.

"Ah.. wait, Daylian-san..." Minato murmured as he got to his feet and stumbled after the wolf.

"Shh..." Daylian hissed. The wolf paused and allowed the blond to catch up, before beginning to trot forward again to circle around the camp.

Minato followed him slowly and followed the sound of Daylian's paw steps while he waited for his eyes to adjust to the darkness. He sighed a bit when he could only see the silhouettes of most things, but figured that he could adapt. It was pretty easy to follow Daylian anyway, since he was moving along in front of him. And he could just barely hear the wolf sniffing the ground and whatever bush they passed by.

Frankly enough, Minato didn't think there would be any attack on them tonight. After all his sensei pushed them back into Kusa country... so they wouldn't try and chance sending a platoon or two in Konoha's direction.

The blond raised his arms and stretched a bit, then dropped his limbs back down to his sides. The cold, smooth metal ring of a kunai brushed against his fingers as he did, making the Jounin look downwards and draw the weapon from the holster on his thigh.

The corner of his mouth twitched and cocked slightly in a half-frown as he let the weapon rest on his palm. Minato exhaled a deep sigh and curled his fingers around the handle of the kunai and lowered his hand back down to his side.

"... Whatcha doin'?"

Minato's blue gaze shifted down what he can see of the wolf, whose violet eyes were glowing faintly against the dark.

"Nothing... just thinking that the kunai is too light..."

"Well that isn't really anything, but okay then." Daylian shrugged a bit and padded forward. He nosed Minato's hand for a second and then used his fangs to bite down on the ring of the kunai. Minato only blinked at this and let go of the weapon so that the wolf could hold it.

"It doffint fee tha heafy..." Daylian commented through his teeth while purple eyes stared up at the blond. The wolf growled softly and lowered his head to place the knife onto the ground, running his tongue over his fangs to get the metallic taste out of his mouth. "It feels like any old kunai if you ask me..."

"Well that's because you haven't been practicing with a weighted sword..." Minato murmured softly, casting a glance over his shoulder in the direction of the camp.

The flames were still alight and casting small orange hues on the surrounding ground and nearby bushes. The ninja were getting as much rest as they could, with a couple of them awake and thinking about either the approaching battle or the villagers back home.

The battle...

Minato was suddenly a bit tense at the thought, but shook his head and told himself silently that they were going to win this battle and that they'd be back to return home..

"-Heyyy are you listening?"

"Huh?" Minato blinked and looked down at the wolf. Daylian was nudging the blond's hand using his head, violet optics looking up at him.

"I said that I can probably help you out."

"... For what?" Minato asked rather blankly as he blinked, scratching his head. He could see the wolf roll his eyes.

"With the weight... Buuut we'll discuss this after we get back to Konoha." Daylian commented as he turned around to trot around the camp again with his nose at work. Minato blinked and lowered down to pick up his near-weightless kunai, in his opinion, and follow half-blindly after the black wolf.

"Wait, you're gonna-"

"Not now. Actually, wait until Christmas."

"Christmas? But, Daylian-san-"

"Nope... Now just make sure you live through the battle, okay?" Daylian paused to look over his shoulder, white fangs barely visible in the night as he grinned.

* * *

"They're just out of my range, Tsunade-sama... I think the Iwa platoons have been pushed back even further..." Hizashi reported as they leapt through the trees in Shunshin bursts. It was still stark-black so they used small glass lanterns to capture the fire for a light source. The lighting wasn't great but they would just have to adapt and use the fire in place of the missing moonlight.

Minato listened to the Hyuuga's report from where he was a couple of branches behind the leading two. He himself carried a small lantern to help guide everyone else through the dark forest, as well as a bag carrying some of the provisions. Kushina was stumbling along besides him, clearly inept as she traveled. Her foot often slipped from miscalculating the size of the branch, and would often get pulled back upright by Minato. This clearly embarrassed her, since she resorted to clutching the sleeve of his Jounin underclothing as an added guide.

"We couldn't wait 'til the morning or anything?" Kushina grumbled softly as she kept her gaze on the small lantern Minato was holding. "I can't see anything, datte'sa..."

"I'm quite fine, actually." Daylian commented with a shrug of his shoulders. He also held a couple of provision and supply bags, landing on one tree branch and shooting off to cover the large gap to the next one.

Kushina scowled as she saw his silhouette disappear forward to fall in pace with Hizashi and Tsunade. She didn't like this one bit. For starters it was _freezing_, and the branches were slippery from the snow being frozen into thing layers of ice on the half-dead branches. Any regular person could've easily fallen out of the dying trees. Kushina had to keep her weight and footing light just so that she wouldn't be like any other person and break the tree branches.

"It's all about adapting, girly." Shikaku was also carrying a small round lantern, though he used a stick to hold it leisurely above his head with the ring; so that the Konoha platoons behind him could follow more easily.

Kushina scowled at the Nara's orange-hued face but spat and turned her head back to the front with Minato's lantern visible in the corner of her eye. The blond chuckled warily at this.

Honestly, he was still rather distracted with thoughts about the kiss earlier that evening. Or was it already considered yesterday? He couldn't tell the time at the moment and just regarded that minor detail. Feeling Kushina cling onto his sleeve only made the blood pool in his cheeks, inwardly thanking that it was night time.

Unwillingly his gaze trailed over to Kushina, watching her growl as she stared downwards to try and get a glimpse at the branches she was traveling on.

Almost shortly after, Minato felt his right arm jerking downwards when Kushina missed a branch. Instinctively, he flung his arm upwards to haul Kushina up as well, yanking his sleeve from her grip and wrapping his arm around her waist. His other hand grabbed a kunai rather sloppily since he still held onto the lantern. Minato swiftly threw the knife upwards and disappeared with Kushina a moment after.

The kunai was in his hand again and he swiftly jumped from branch to branch to follow the rest of the Konoha platoons.

It took a few seconds for Kushina to completely register what happened just now, since it all happened so quickly. She looked over at the blond's face, which was orange-hued thanks to the lantern, questioningly before she blushed, realizing that his arm was still around her waist and that he was practically carrying her across the weak branches.

Minato returned the kunai to his weapon pouch and held the lantern back upright, then turned his head as if finally sensing her stare. He realized the situation and smiled a bit.

"Heyyyy! Stop lagging behind! We gotta move quickly, y'know?" An older Konoha Jounin called back to them.

"Ah.. Hai..." Minato responded as he nodded. He glanced back at the kunoichi again and couldn't stop himself from smiling at how close they were, before he picked up the pace so that they could fall back in pace with the others. Kushina gave no sign of resistance, only smiling softly to herself as well.

They remained traveling at the constant pace, the forest slowly thinning out as they approached the border of their country. After a while most other foliage vanished as well, fading into barren, snow-covered land that would eventually be covered in grass when spring came. A good number of the Konoha ninja grew nervous, clearly used to being in the cover of the forest instead of being in such vast, open land.

Then Hizashi finally announced that they were in Kusa's borders.

"I can see the battle from here." The Hyuuga also added. "It should be another hour of travelling... Maybe a little less if we're fast enough."

"Really?" Tsunade muttered as she fixated her gaze forward. It was rather pointless, considering she could only see probably a couple of feet ahead of her thanks to the weak fire of the lantern.

Minato was one of the many Konoha nin that slowly grew anxious. His arm unconsciously tightened around Kushina's waist with the corner of his mouth twitching uneasily. His gaze flickered to Kushina, though her eyes were only fixated forward. Either she was quick to adapt to the terrain or she was confident. Probably both, knowing her.

"We're picking up the pace, everyone... We gotta help Jiraiya and the others if they're still fighting out there." Tsunade called over her shoulder. Without another word the blond turned and continued to follow the Hyuuga, both their speed hastening.

They all followed at a pace just below Tsunade and Hizashi's, a few of them casting glances around as they extended their senses to search for any hiding ambush platoons. Most of them tried to ignore the cold, frigid air that the snow only added onto, focusing on running to get their bodies warm and their blood moving.

Kushina squirmed slightly in Minato's arm when it was getting harder to run at the quickened pace. Though Minato's grip was strong from being tense, so Kushina remained at his hip for the time being. She glanced up at him, eyes rolling over his worried features before she looked back at the spots of light and small shadows the lanterns were casting.

"... Minato..."

"Uh? Oh, uh, sorry.." Minato was snapped out of his tense trance and flustered, removed his arm from around her.

Kushina warily grinned, trying to ignore the fact that the cold air was now attacking the area where the blond's arm once was. Though she supposed the air wasn't as cold as it was back in Uzu..

She blinked and then mentally hit herself while shaking her head rapidly from side to side. _It's all in the past... Konoha's my home now, 'tebayo... _Kushina thought to herself while gritting her teeth in annoyance. She needed to focus.

_Focus..._Kushina warily repeated to herself. The corner of her mouth twitched when unwanted thoughts of her former country passed through her mind. She _hated_ this feeling. She had to _focus_ on protecting her _new home_...

Her gaze trailed upwards as if to try and see if she could catch a glimpse of the moon or the stars. There were a few dull stars visible, but the clouds continued to loom overhead and obscure the main lighting source during the night. _I can't keep thinking about Uzu... If I think about it for a moment during battle, then..._Kushina lowered her gaze slightly, but it was unconsciously drawn to the lantern Minato was holding.

_I'll be good as gone, 'te'sa.. And then Minato'll be..._Brown-red eyes looked over at the blond running along side of her. Minato's own expression was rather blank and unreadable, eyes staring ahead as if he was trapped in his own thoughts for the time being.

_Sad._

Her pupils narrowed unconsciously at the very thought. Her dying was one thing, but Minato being sad was a whole other story. Her fingers slowly curled into a fist, beginning to tremble angrily.

She barely registered the fact that the wind started to blow.

Everyone else in the Konoha platoon tensed at the slight but sudden change in weather, their gazes snapping in the direction the gales were coming from.

"I don't smell anything..." Kuromaru muttered between pants. His yellow pair of eyes glanced around at this, as if searching for the source that gave him an uneasy feeling.

_There's chakra in these gales..._ Hizashi thought tensely to himself with a frown forming. His gaze shot off to their right, and instantly another strong gust of wind attacked the group.

Their flight instantly stopped to make sure they could stand their ground against the vicious gales.

"Ite...!" A Jounin hissed when he felt something sharp slice across his cheek. He raised his hand to inspect it, only to find some blood slowly trickling down from the slit skin.

"It's an attack!!" Hizashi raised his arms to defend himself, eyes widening when he felt metal slicing through the sleeves of his robe. He bit back a hiss of pain and lowered his arm slowly away from his head to pull out the kunai that embedded itself in his forearm. "They're using the wind to increase the speed and power of the weapons!"

"We're sitting ducks..." Kuromaru spat under his breath, squinting his eyes against the gales as he lowered himself slightly, hackles rising. A sharp pain suddenly shot through him, an uncontrollable yelp escaping him as he flung himself backwards, writhing on the ground violently. His paws flailed slightly and his maw was wide open and swinging wildly as if trying to grab the kunai that got shot into his left eye.

"Kuromaru..?!" Tsume hissed, and then her gaze snapped blindly down to the black and gray ninken when she no longer sensed him standing besides her.

"Dammit!" Tsunade growled. She took a rough hold of Hizashi's injured arm, making him flinch and about to demand that she let go. The Hyuuga stopped when he realized that she was healing his wound while shielding her head with a kunai. "Duck and cover! Who ever's got a shielding jutsu, _use it_!!"

"On it, dattebayo!!" Kushina growled over the wind. She lowered down in front of Minato with her hand swiftly digging at the weapon pouch on her lower back. The red-haired kunoichi pulled out the scroll Minato had drawn up earlier- luckily deflecting a shuriken with it -and unrolled it.

Due to the wind, the opened end instantly flew onto her stomach and stayed there. Kushina placed her hand in a seal and squinted against the wind. Water soon shot out of the kanji and the runes, already riddled with chakra so that it wouldn't get blown away easily. The kunoichi kneeled on her scroll so that it wouldn't fly off, freeing her hands to make a transition of hand signs.

The summoned water squirmed in midair for a second and then shot past the Konoha ninja, slowly expanding into a large wall that Kushina hoped shielded all of the comrades. Weapons slammed violently into the Suiton wall, the momentum managing to make them shoot half way into the wall before slowly clattering uselessly on the other side.

"Everyone put out your lanterns, now!" Tsunade hissed after she extinguished her own, her hand releasing a light amount of chakra to stop the bleeding from Kuromaru's eye. Or rather, the socket. His eye was no longer useful now. Kuromaru was writhing painfully beneath her hand, trying his best not to close the eye that was being healed.

Swiftly the tiny flames were diminished, leaving them in the stark night with the weak glow from the stars shining through thin clouds. They all crouched and huddled around each other to remain in the protection of the Suiton, listening to the wind slamming into the water wall while their eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness.

"If I had to guess, they're Kusa ninja..." Shikaku commented as he half-blindly reached out for one of the various weapons that were piling up besides the wall.

"Why are Kusa nin attacking us?" Kushina growled. She was lowered onto the ground as well, her calves slowly growing sore from the decrease in blood flowing downwards. Her hands were clasped tightly in a seal, making sure to keep the chakra in the wall dense so that the wind and weapons wouldn't shoot through. "Can't they just attack Iwa?!"

"They probably realize the disadvantage they'd have if they took on Iwa and risk being attacked by Konoha as well." Shikaku pointed out. "They're probably just going to lie in wait and pick off whatever reinforcements cross into their borders..."

"We can't just keep sitting here forever... We gotta make them back off." The Uchiha's voice growled from somewhere amongst the lowered Konoha ninja.

"What do you think we're going to do? Just sit here and wait for their chakra to run out?" Tsunade questioned, referring to both Kushina and whoever was casting the vicious Fuuton against them. "Hizashi."

"Hai." The Hyuuga straightened himself when his name was called, his bloodline activated so he could see everyone by their chakra rather than their silhouettes.

"Take the Uchiha and... Chibi with you, since he's fast... Go around this Fuuton and attack whoever's there, got it? Lead the Uchiha and Chibi around the Fuuton, towards the user... Uchiha, Chibi, you two better be listening. Anyway, Uchiha brat'll attack first.. Something that'll provide Chibi a source of light for a second so he can see the guy. Make sure it doesn't last for more than a couple of seconds, alright, Uchiha? We don't want to draw anymore attention to ourselves... Make them back off or whatever, alright?"

"Right..." The Uchiha murmured, rolling his eyes. "And I have an individual name you know... It's Ittetsu."

"Suits you well." Daylian commented, having transformed when the Fuuton first started, raised his wolf lip raised slightly in a type of sneer.

"Quiet, asshole." Ittetsu growled back sharply.

"That's enough. You heard Tsunade-sama's orders..." Hizashi murmured from where he was standing besides the blond medic. "We should leave now, Ittetsu-san, Namikaze-san..."

"Hai." Minato replied with a nod. He slowly got up and ignored the pain of blood flowing back down to his calves, using a good amount of his senses to move around the crouching platoons. As he moved towards Hizashi, Minato could feel his yellow bangs moving from the wisps of wind that managed to move around the Suiton barrier. Ittetsu joined the two shortly after, his own bloodline glowing faintly in the dark.

"Let's go." Hizashi hissed as he darted through the wind currents that were shooting past the Suiton wall. The Uchiha stared at the raging gale, as if calculating something, before he shot through it. Minato didn't even hesitate, only using a Shunshin to quickly move past it.

Kushina frowned slightly, not even bothering to watch them go, seeing that she couldn't. Her eyes took a long time to adjust to darkness, which is why she didn't really like the late hours. For now she only concentrated on keeping the barrier solid and wide enough for all of the Konoha platoons, believing that Minato and the other two would take out the unseen enemy.

Minato had a slightly easier time following the two, dead grass crunching beneath their feet as they ran. Hizashi obviously found the caster of the Fuuton, confidently guiding his fellows through the plains with his body lowered slightly as he ran. Ittetsu was frowning slightly and staring ahead blankly, as if inwardly scrolling through his arsenal and picking out which jutsu to use.

The blond shook his head and molded his chakra the best he could without giving away their positions. Quick and painless. That's what he planned for the attacker.

Hizashi picked up speed suddenly, and Ittetsu was able to fall into the same pace almost instantly. Minato concentrated for a second to find their presence in the darkness and then darted after them whilst keeping his chakra level low.

Ittetsu darted forward suddenly with his hands already flickering in a set of seals.

Sensing the sudden chakra flare from the Uchiha, Minato prepared himself to find the location of the Fuuton user. He drew a couple of kunais and narrowed his eyes to concentrate, hoping the movement would force his eyes to adjust a bit more quickly.

Ittetsu clasped his hands on the final seal and spat out a small fireball. It was probably no bigger than a fist, but it was fast moving and illuminated the night with an orange-yellow hue. It shot past a shinobi crouching besides a small hill, the panic visible in his eyes before the flame suddenly extinguished.

Minato was already darting for the man when he caught the look in the Kusa ninja's eyes. He gripped the kunai tightly in his hand and lunged forward in a swift shunshin, memorizing where the nin was and lashed out with the weapon. Minato felt something come in contact with the light blade and heard a gag, but narrowed his eyes when he felt a chakra flare coming up right before him.

The blond was instantly pushed back by the Fuuton, stumbling backwards a bit before being caught by his arm. Minato panicked for a second but recognized Hizashi's chakra signature. Ittetsu's snarl was audible.

"Too shallow! He got away!"

"Killing him was just an option, Ittetsu-san..." Hizashi murmured. "We made him back off. We can continue on from now."

"But he'll go and tell his comrades for sure! What if they're camping out just a little off from here?" Ittetsu demanded while Hizashi helped Minato upright. Hizashi's grey gaze met Ittetsu's red-black ones evenly.

"Then we'll just have to move fast and join the battle before they catch us. Konoha is already going to have enough difficulties just for pushing the battle back into Kusa's territory."

"I'm sorry I can't see in the dark, alright?" Minato growled as he turned away from Ittetsu, concentrating for a few seconds to locate the rest of their comrades. He felt some chakra squirming a few good meters off and recognized it as Kushina's.

"It's a wonder how you became a Jounin if you can't even fight in the dark- much less kill someone when an opening is given to you." Ittetsu spat as he walked past the blond, not even having to pause like Minato did to look for the area the others were in.

Annoyance flickered across Minato's half-visible features, before he growled and refrained himself from snapping back at the Uchiha. Instead he just gritted his teeth and clenched his fist tightly at his side, swiftly using a Shunshin to angrily move past Ittetsu and towards the others. Behind him, Minato could hear Hizashi speak his name in a low volume, but he ignored it.

The blond saw a lantern being lit and saw Kuromaru's figure on the ground beneath the light, quickly changing his direction towards it. Inwardly he fumed at the Uchiha's words, but he was more mad at himself for messing up. Ittetsu did have a point- the Kusa nin was bound to tell his comrades if he was with any. Their positions would be given away, and now they had to move quickly to join the battle and risk another attack from Kusa.

Minato regrouped with the Konoha ninja within a few seconds, trying to calm himself as he stalked back to Tsunade. "He got away." He reported under his breath, making the blond kunoichi look up.

"Then why are you so angry?"

Minato only looked at her, huffing softly to himself and shaking his head. He moved around the resting Konoha group, his eyes having adjusted to the night by this point. He moved away from most of them and had his back turned to them as well. The blond inhaled deeply, feeling his chest swell up from all the air, and then exhaled to calm himself down. He raised one hand to rub the back of his neck, rolling his blue gaze upwards at the sky.

"Are you alright...?" He could hear Kushina question uncertainly, the dead grass crunching audibly beneath her feet as she approached from behind.

"... Just angry that I made a mistake..." Minato murmured in a rather apologetic tone, forcing himself to calm down now.

"That's it? You managed to push the guy off, so it should be all good, right, 'tebayo?"

"I know but... We can't really afford mistakes right now." Minato sighed heavily again and shook his head without turning around to face her.

Kushina rolled her eyes slightly. "So everything's gotta be perfect, right?"

"Well.. No, but..." Minato's mouth twitched slightly. "... But if there's ever a time when..." He paused and swallowed nervously a bit then forced himself to say it, knowing that Kushina would make him finish his sentence. "When I need to protect you... I can't make simple mistakes..."

"... Minato... I don't need to be protected all the time... I'm strong enough..."

"Even so..." Minato bit his lip. "I _want_to protect you.. So long as you're safe, I won't really care about my life." The blond shifted a bit when he heard the crunch of more dead grass beneath ninja zori, blinking when he felt something against his back and arms around his stomach.

"That's stupid." Kushina mumbled into his vest-covered back, enjoying the warmth he gave off. "If you want to protect me, then do it and _live_, dattebayo. Mistakes or not, if we're both alive then we'll both be happy."

Minato stood there with Kushina hugging him from behind, his gaze slowly trailing downwards from the sky. The words started to sink in after a while, and after that Minato realized how calm he was feeling. The corners of his mouth twitched and then slowly stretched into a grin.

"Oh...? Have it your way then. I'll put my life on the line for your sake. Then I'll survive and keep living."

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **_I'm not really satisfied with this chapter_. :c God, how long did it take to type up? I'm sorry.. X.x I've just been very distracted lately.  
Pokémon is mostly to blame. xD;

(Lul, Ittetsu is probably a way to say stubborn, by the way. xD)

And sorry, but it's kinda a filler chapter. u.u' I'll get right to work on the other one.. I promise it won't be a filler... n.n;


	22. Night Attack

**Chapter XXII: Night Attack**

So far there were no signs of Kusa ninja.

For now they only had about three or four lanterns alight for guidance, Hizashi holding one of them. They continued running at a fixed pace, senses extended to try and find signs of the battle themselves. Hizashi only murmured the distance between himself and the battle occasionally, eyes staring ahead blankly at the dark night.

Kuromaru was running on his paws, panting lightly as he tried to ignore the hollow sensation in his left eye. Bandages covered the useless area now, which only made him growl in annoyance since it would be a hassle to peel off the bandages from his fur. Though he knew he deserved it. He wasn't being careful and he lost his eye for it. It would just serve as a constant reminder to be wary in battles and similar situations.

Several minutes of running passed, though it seemed like hours to the Konoha reinforcements

Rumbling was audible in the once-silent night. The ground vibrated softly beneath their moving feet. Upon listening carefully, there were yells in the distant darkness, though they were faint, causing several shoulders tensed, and limbs stiffened in a slightly awkward flight.

The battle was drawing near.

Shikaku shifted from where he was following the group, shaking his bandaged head. He wouldn't admit that he was still rather lightheaded, even after resting and eating a Hyorogan provided by Tsume. "Oiii. Hizashi. What's going on in the battle. Are we losin'?"

Even though Shikaku spoke in a regular tone, his voice was rather loud against the cold air. The question reached the ears of the entire Konoha platoon, who all fell silent to listen to Hizashi's answer, curious to know themselves how their comrades were holding up.

Hizashi only added onto the silence- with the exception of the low rumbling -and only shook his head. The ninja who could see this gave a grunt of disappointment, which eventually spread out to the rest of the platoon.

"Well that's why we're headin' there now, aren't we?" Kushina growled. Her voice was rather loud compared to Shikaku, clearly not thinking of the high volume. "Just do whatever we can and then get out of there alive. So long as we're alive it's all good, right?"

"You're missing the point of a war." Ittetsu muttered under his breath so he wouldn't be as loud as the red-head. "Unless we kill them or someone makes peace, there'll only be more battles."

Kushina scowled a bit. Clearly she wanted to say something in response to the Uchiha, but closed her mouth when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Minato was staring at her calmly, his anger from before nearly gone as he shook his head.

By this point the rumbling was becoming more definable, turning into large quakes that threatened to knock light-weight ninja off their feet.

"Uh-oh..." Hizashi muttered with his voice barely audible over a large vibration. "Giant Doton boulder coming in a eleven o'clock, Tsunade-sama..."

Tsunade frowned. "Che..." She snorted softly under her breath and shot forward, drawing her fist back past her head before thrusting it forward in a punch. She expended a large amount of chakra just before her fist came in contact with the Doton, shattering the large boulder into several, smaller fragments.

The Konoha ninja shielded themselves from the raining rock pieces, following Hizashi and Tsunade forward and into the large, long ditch to shield themselves from more flying rocks as the Doton attacks persisted.

"It's about time you guys got here!" A Jounin, covered in dust and some dried blood, growled from where he was covering his head. "Do you have any water...?"

"We got some."

"We've got some wounded people, Tsunade..." Jiraiya crept forward at this, lowered into a crouch. Some lanterns were alight in the ditch as well, dimmed to a low level that provided almost no illumination. The white-haired Sennin was holding one of the aforementioned lanterns.

"Sensei...!" Minato's shoulders dropped in relief upon hearing Jiraiya's voice, exhaling a heavy sigh.

"What, I'm not that easy to get rid of, you know." Jiraiya snorted before he murmured a response to the question Tsunade asked.

The earth shook violently again and there was another explosion, sending showers of dust and rock fragments into the ditch. The Konoha ninja that were already in the ditch long before the others quickly covered their heads, knowing what to do. The platoons that had just arrived with Tsunade only lowered their bodies, heads tilted back to try and get a glimpse at their invisible enemies.

"Don't tell me you guys have just been sitting in here this whole time!!" Ittetsu spat under his breath as he shook his head, though it was futile to get rid of the dust in his hair.

"Half of us just got slaughtered out there a few minutes ago!!" Jiraiya spat back.

Kushina flinched at the Sannin's choice of words, eyes widening. She unconsciously recoiled and covered her stomach with her arms, willing for the small nausea to go away.

Minato couldn't suppress a large shudder that ran down his spine, trying to shake the feeling off. He pushed aside the mental image of dead bodies covered in blood and scattered around in the land above their heads. "Half of us...?"

"That's right..." Jiraiya muttered. "Though I think we managed to take a few chunks out of them.. Orochimaru's up there right now taking them head on... But I'm not sure if he's still alive, judging from all those giant boulders they're flingin' at us."

"Yeah right... Orochimaru's still up there.. Things would've been quite for a little bit if they managed to get him.." Tsunade's honey gaze rolled blindly up to the top of the ditch. "So what're we gonna do in this situation, hmm?"

"..." Jiraiya's mouth twitched as several ideas ran through his head. His black gaze eventually flickered back down to the kunoichi. "You tend to the injured ones we got here..."

Tsunade sighed at this but she nodded and moved past her former teammate, holding the lamp out in front of her to look for the said injured ninja. She found them after a few seconds and soon got to work, leaving Jiraiya to keep thinking about their current situation.

"... Alright... Anyone have any suggestions?" The Sennin questioned with a sigh, deciding that the ideas he thought of weren't of much worth while they were still cornered in the pit.

The newcomers of the Konoha army exchanged half-visible glances amongst each other, unsure themselves of what to do in the current situation. Minato shifted at the silence- excluding the rumblings and explosions the large Doton boulders made- and glanced upwards. He quickly clambered up the ditch, sending some dust scattering down and onto a few nearby Jounins.

"Oi, what are you doing?" Jiraiya growled as he barely managed to hear the hiss of dust falling to the ground. His black eyes blindly trailed upwards, looking for the one who was climbing upwards. "Not like you can see much anyway..."

"You'll see, sensei." Minato replied. He leaned heavily against the side of the ditch once he reached the top, using his forearm to prop himself up while he dug through his weapon pouch with the other. _At least a couple..._ He thought hopefully, eyes brightening in relief when he found what he was looking for.

A second after, the ground shook violently as a boulder bounced off the ground in front of him, the momentum carrying it over the ditch and back to where the Konoha platoon came from. Minato was frozen for a couple of seconds, as if he were shocked that he was still alive. _... Holy... _

"Oi! Minato!! You didn't get your skull boulder'd, did ya?!" Jiraiya called rather urgently from below.

"Uhh..." The blond could only respond in a dumbfound tone at the time, before he shook his head and recovered from the shock. That_ was close.. _"I'm fine! Just hold on..."

Minato quickly drew his hand from his weapon pouch and placed them on the ground before him. He quickly hauled the rest of himself up, his face dropping slightly when he felt a huge dip the boulder had created. He shook his head and quickly gathered the supplies he brought out. Minato tore off the Hiraishin seals that were wrapped onto the handles. He swiftly replaced the Hiraishin seals with exploding tags, repeating the process for the six kunais.

Minato ducked and covered his head when he felt another quake, feeling the impact of another rock slamming into the ground a couple of yards to his left. He had to move quickly. He carefully got up to his feet, three kunai in each hand, and threw the set in his right hand.

There was a clattering noise, indicating that one of the kunai hit a Doton jutsu. He scowled and quickly folded the fingers of his right hand into a sign. More explosions added onto the quakes and crumbling rocks. Orange and red colored the scene for a few seconds, and blue eyes swiftly darted around to get a glimpse at the surroundings.

Eyes widened as his pupils were drawn to an incoming object above him. Minato swiftly backed up, nearly stumbling on the dip as he did so. His instincts told him to throw the kunais he held in his left hand, which he swiftly did. The tags exploded a second later, making the rock crumble and shower downwards.

The force of the close-range explosion knocked Minato back down in the ditch, skidding against the slope of it before he landed in a heap at the bottom. Though it wasn't visible now, there was a large cloud of dust filling the ditch, making Minato and several others cough.

Minato groaned and shifted in the loose dust at the bottom of the ditch, glad that he didn't land on anyone. He slowly pushed himself to his feet, feeling several gazes on him as well as some movement approaching him.

"Dammit that was close, 'Nato! You could've gotten flattened by that thing!" Jiraiya growled as he pulled Minato up, holding a lantern to the blond to look for any injuries. The young Jounin only looked up at his sensei, his blue eyes clearly bright against his dusty face and hair.

"They have a Doton wall protecting them... It's pretty long but it ends eventually, sensei..." Minato stopped to cough up some dust. His mouth felt rather dry and musty which made him stick his tongue out in disgust.

"Someone get this kid some water.." Jiraiya growled over his shoulder.

Almost instantly, a canteen was passed to Jiraiya, which he passed on down to Minato. "Drink a little bit... What else did you see up there?"

Minato tipped the canteen at his lips and drank some of the contents, ignoring the dirty taste and swallowing instead. "Orochimaru.. -san.. I think... He was trying to get past the wall but he's having a hard time with all the boulders..."

"Well of course he's having problems..." Jiraiya muttered under his breath, which was practically drown out by the quakes. "They're going to run out of chakra eventually, right?"

"They're actually rather low now..." Hizashi reported from somewhere in the ditch. Jiraiya only responded by looking over his shoulder for the source of the voice and then shrugged in response and looked back to his former student.

"So what are we going to do then, sensei...?" Minato questioned without bothering to wipe the layer of dirt from his face.

"Let them run their chakra dry. Rest for a bit and then we'll go and counter attack when the number of rocks lessens, alright?"

"Ossu!"

* * *

Masuhita peered over the large wall that Minato had described, before ducking his head to avoid a snake. He swiftly lashed his arm out above his head, easily severing the snake's head off and letting it drop dead to the ground.

"He's still alive." Masuhita stated in a matter-of-fact tone, receiving a growl of annoyance from Hiruta.

"Are you guys even aiming anymore? It shouldn't take this long just to kill _one_ of them." The battle-scarred commander growled over his shoulder.

"It's not exactly easy... sir." An Iwa Jounin added at the last second. "He can easily dodge these attacks... They're too big and the movements are readable."

"Then switch on over to something faster." Masuhita stated again in another matter-of-fact tone, hauling himself up to peer over the wall again. His eyes were instantly drawn over to where he could sense the Hebi Sennin's chakra, his gaze then flickering upwards and to the large boulder that was rolling towards the aforementioned Sennin.

Masuhita shook his head at this, only keeping his eyes in the direction of the Sennin's chakra signature. There was a whistling sound of something moving through the air quickly, and the Jounin snorted. "There you go.. Using your brains for once?"

The Iwa Jounin didn't have to even look at the new Doton jutsu to tell the shape of the chakra-molded earth. Just the sound they made while travelling through air and the scattered speckles of chakra told him enough that they were spike-shaped dirt hardened by chakra.

Masuhita had to shake his head again. _They're not using enough chakra... The Sannin'll still be able to dodge them..._

"Whatever shall we do in this situation...?" Masuhita murmured to himself as he dropped down from the Doton wall. His eyes flickered to his right, seeing the ones casting the weakening jutsu as well as the ninja too tired to even stand up, leaning against the wall for support. Masuhita looked over to his left and sensed the same thing. "Hm..."

"Just what are you thinking of?"

Takao's voice snapped Masuhita out of his thoughts for a second. The younger sibling only smirked in response to his blade-wielding brother.

"Come.. Walk with me, aniki. Let's go gather everyone up."

"..." Takao's head slowly turned to watch his younger brother walk off. He shook his head slightly and turned to follow, quietly wondering to himself what Masuhita was planning this time.

* * *

"How long have we been waiting down here? Their chakra should've run out by this point."

Ittetsu's irritated (and annoying to many) voice managed to echo its way around the large ditch. There were a few growls of annoyance at his constant questioning and 'whining', teeth gritting and eyes glaring in the direction his voice came from. Jiraiya's heavy sigh was heard and he spoke for everyone.

"Just a few minutes.. And I know, I was thinking that too... But there's also a chance they can be alternating and such."

"And we're just going to wait here until _all _of them run out of chakra..." Ittetsu questioned skeptically.

"That's the general idea... We're also resting a bit too..." Jiraiya responded in a wary tone.

Ittetsu gave an annoyed grunt, making Jiraiya sighed. "Okay, okay... Oi, Hyuuga-san.. Do you mind?"

"... Of course not." Hizashi murmured in response, sighing softly as he lowered the canteen that was half way up to his mouth. He handed it back to another Jounin and placed his hands in several hand signs, ending with the last one. He blinked once and then narrowed his eyes as if focusing.

Minato stared over at Hizashi, as if wondering what his silence was all about. He rolled his eyes when he sensed the smug aura emanating from Ittetsu. He took a quick sip from a canteen to hydrate his throat, blue eyes still looking over in the direction of the Hyuuga.

"What are they...?" Hizashi murmured over the rumbling of the continuous rocks slamming into the ground. He jerked upright suddenly and got to his feet, fists clenching while his eyes glared blankly ahead.

Tension suddenly filled the air, their gazes on the standing Hyuuga. Tsunade growled after several seconds.

"What's going on, Hizashi?!" She hissed under her breath. Hizashi only raised his hand as if to silence her- which only showed how focused he was.

His eyes widened suddenly and he jerked to look over his shoulder, the veins along his temples receding slightly. "They're retreating..!?"

"Isn't that a good thing?" A Jounin inputted warily.

"They are leaving a few behind.. And they've still got a good amount of chakra to keep us here for a while longer." Hizashi growled through his teeth.

Jiraiya sword under his breath after a short pause and got to his own feet, slouching slightly to let the blood run back down to his legs. "Geezus... Alrighty, let's see..." The Sennin's voice was overlapped by the rumbling. He rubbed the back of his neck and squinted against the dust that fell down from the top of the ditch, his mouth twitching. He heard the whistling of something travelling slicing quickly through the air and frowned.

The white-haired Gama Sennin ducked a second late as another boulder slammed at the top of the ditch, lodging itself there and sending another shower of dirt to layer the Konoha ninja.

"We should get up there... Get rid of whatever they left behind and just get the hell back to the village... Frankly I'm beat and I could probably sleep for the next two days." Jiraiya growled as he slowly stood up again, sensing that the boulder was lodged pretty good between the two edges of the ditch. He raised his hand above his head and could just barely touch the rock with is fingertips. His eyes widened when he felt his fingers brush something smoother than the rock, and he instantly withdrew his hand, about to yell but was cut off by Hizashi.

"Watch out!!"

The explosion violently shook the edges of the ditch, making some parts of the ground collapse on itself with fragments of the boulder to add onto it.

"Oh fuck..." Jiraiya hissed from where he had thrown himself to the side, growling as he warily pushed himself upright. "Did we lose anyone...?"

Some of the dust heap at his feet shifted and squirmed upwards, the dirt slipping off the ninja's body with soft hisses.

Ittetsu coughed and collapsed forward then caught himself with his hands. He shook his dirty head and spat up some dirt, groaning softly as he swayed slightly on all fours. "Geezus.. That was cheap." He rasped.

Several feet away from the Uchiha, a dome-shaped figure appeared, dirt and dust sliding off of it in multiple hisses and adding onto the larger pile of earth. The water dome squirmed and then slipped apart, receding into the scroll that was half-buried from view.

"_That..._was too close." Daylian commented from where he sat in the large circle the Suiton had made, glancing down at the other Konoha ninja they had managed to save.

"Then let's not sit around for any more attacks like that..." Jiraiya growled.

"I second that." Shikaku warily held his head, sitting up several paces away from the Sennin. "I don't want to be buried alive."

"Then let's get the hell out of here already!" Kushina growled. Without another word the kunoichi charged up the unstable slope, her footing slipping slightly. She scrambled to the top and shook her head, ignoring the layers of dirt that was covering her body and clothing.

A couple of seconds after she was joined by Minato, whom helped her up to her feet. The rest of them appeared in Shunshins along the two, arms raised defensively for any Doton rocks that were headed their way.

"... Sorry, Hizashi. We're gonna need your eyes.. We're all pretty much blind, and if they've set up any traps..."

"There's no traps in the ground... Though their starting to use different forms of Dotons to attack Orochimaru-sama..." The Hyuuga replied with his Kekkei Genkai already active. "... Smaller spikes, judging from the amount of chakra..."

"Let's just charge in already...!!" Kushina growled as she made a sequence of handseals. A volume below the rumbling, the swish of water was audible. The kunoichi directed the water gracefully, before it formed a good-sized barrier around in front of her. She only smirked a bit toothily before darting forward without warning.

Almost instantly she felt smaller Doton spikes slamming into the Suiton barrier with such force that it made her falter.

"Kushina...!" Minato hissed as he joined her a second later, darting a pace behind the kunoichi so that he could stay in the safety of the shield. "It's rather dangerous-"

"Well we gotta do something'." Kushina replied. She flinched when another wave of earth spikes slammed into the Suiton barrier.

"That's true..." Minato's mouth twitched before he shook his head, swiftly drawing kunais again and attaching exploding tags to the weapons. "Cover for me..."

"Gotcha." Kushina nodded. She sensed Minato no longer running along behind her and slowed to a halt, her hands clasping together to direct the water. Her eyes flickered over her shoulder when she sensed other chakra flares from the remaining Konoha army and shifted to cover for some of them as well.

She just hoped that she could move the water quickly enough to defend her comrades.

Kushina guessed the size of the Doton spikes by their chakra level and swiftly focused her chakra to make barriers big enough to block most of them individually. She scowled slightly when she felt her chakra slowly being expended, but held on knowing that it would be over soon.

Minato squinted when he felt water droplets splaying his face, but ignored it. It only told him that the water was protecting him from being shot by small dirt pellets that were riddled with chakra. He held four kunais, two in each hand, and crossed his arms. He lashed out and threw the weapons, instantly folding his fingers into handsigns.

Explosions sounded and the area was lit up in orange and red hues from the blasts.

The blond looked over his shoulder as he felt a surge of large flow of chakra coming up behind him, vanishing in a shunshin to avoid the large Suiton. The water slammed against the wide Doton wall that was protecting the remaining Iwa ninja.

Daylian smirked as he stood with his feet parted, violet eyes flickering past the other ninja he had combined the Suiton with. "Go for it."

Another ninja only hopped forward onto the surface of the water, hands flickering at highspeed to concentrating his chakra. "Raiton: Hekirei Tobikomi."

Kushina stared down at the water she was unconsciously standing on, blinking in surprise at the sharp chakra that was jumping rapidly towards the wall. She quickly jumped over the first wave of electrical chakra, flipping to join her brother-by-law out of harm's way

The electricity, using the water as guidance, surged towards the wall at high speed. The first wave slammed into the Doton, while the second wave made it crumble almost instantly. At this point, Kushina was helping Daylian and the other Jounin withdraw the water.

Minato's gaze sharply shot towards where he felt another chakra and refrained from going after it. This vicious, blood-thirsty chakra was Orochimaru's, he recognized.

"Wait.." Jiraiya called when the others were about to move forward as well. A Jounin was about to question this, when a blood curdling yell pierced through the cold air.

Hizashi grimaced and deactivated his bloodline, no longer wanting to see what the Hebi Sennin was doing to the Iwa ninja that stayed behind. He raised the lantern and closed his eyes, waiting for the yelling to finish.

Kushina shuddered and covered her mouth. She heard a gag as well as several sickening snaps. She only heard two yells before she felt rather dizzy. The kunoichi swayed a bit but managed to stay on her feet, trying not to think about the screams as well as the grotesque sounds coming from a few yards away.

Then everything went quiet after a sickening rip and a couple of thuds.

Orochimaru's footsteps were barely audible as he regrouped with the Konoha ninja. Most of them drew the lanterns and raised them to see the Sennin.

Whatever weapon Orochimaru had used, it was long gone from his blood-coated hands. There were several splatters of blood layering the dirt on his clothing and face, which was smirking rather darkly. There were a couple of chuckles escaping the Sannin as he stepped forward to join the rest of them. He broke the silence, speaking in a rather casual tone,

"Shall we head back to the village?"

* * *

Kushina had _no_ idea what happened after that.

Actually, she had a hard time remembering a little bit _before_ that.

The sudden memory of Orochimaru and his hands coated in blood made her squirm uncomfortably, fighting back the nausea that was rising up in her stomach. She then realized that she was on someone's back, being carried. The red-haired kunoichi opened her eyes slowly, scowling a bit at the light.

_Light..._

Where was she?

"Finally awake, Kushina?"

A familiar voice echoed rather loudly in Kushina's ear, making her head ring slightly with a soft pounding to follow. Groaning, the kunoichi raised her right hand to hold the throbbing part of her head. Her squinting eyes slowly opened to get a look at her surroundings. She did her best to ignore the sunlight that came in through the high canopies of the trees. Kushina turned her head and her face was instantly buried in dusty hair, making her choke a bit from inhaling the dust.

"Ah.. Are you alright?" Minato questioned as he tried to look at her from the corners of his eyes. He paused and jumped when he felt Kushina beginning to slide off his back, slouching further so that he wouldn't have to adjust her again so soon.

"Uhm..." Kushina turned so that she wasn't inhaling the dust in Minato's hair, groaning under her breath as she rubbed her eye. "Where...?"

"Almost to the village." Daylian's voice murmured a couple of feet away. "You kinda passed out. I think I can guess a couple of reasons.. And you were probably dead exhausted by that point, too..."

"How long was I out...?" Kushina asked warily when she heard this. She did admit, her limbs felt heavy right now, so she didn't mind being selfish for the moment and letting Minato give her a piggy-back. Sighing, she rested her head on the back of the blond's neck, ignoring the dust.

"A whole day, actually." The black-haired ninja replied.

A deadpan crossed Kushina's tired face. "A day?"

"Don't worry; I didn't mind." Minato grinned a bit and chuckled softly to himself. For now he ignored the drowsiness that was slowly catching up to him, knowing that they were almost to the village.

"That's not really what-"

"Haha, oi, oi!! Kushina-yatsu, you're awake!!" Tsume grinned toothily as she caught up to the trio, Kuromaru galloping softly at her heels. "What happened, anyway? I mean all of us are tired but you kinda just dropped dead last night!"

"Um..." Kushina only grumbled with her face reddening slightly. Luckily for her, there were a couple of layers worth of dust on her face, hiding the rising blood. "Just... dropped my guard and then collapsed, I guess, datte'sa..."

"Haha, is that so?" Tsume just continued to grin, rather too tired to doubt Kushina's excuse. "But we should be able to rest for a couple of days at the least... So just sleep away if you want. 'Cuz luckily Kaze-yatsu here is _sooo_ willing to carry you."

With a smug grin the Inuzuka kunoichi elbowed Minato playfully in the side, making him jerk for being hit in a sensitive spot. The blond felt his cheeks grow hot at this, staring down at Tsume wide-eyed for a second before he grumbled and returned his gaze to the front, following the his sensei and the rest of the Konoha ninja.

Daylian and Kuromaru only snickered under their breath. Kushina chuckled a bit and then rested her head back onto Minato's neck, closing her eyes to rest for the time being.

"... Oiii, wake up! I can see the path that leads to the village! We're almost home, everyone!" Jiraiya called from the front.

Minato blinked at this, before he smiled wryly. He stifled a yawn, unable to cover his mouth since he carried Kushina. Tsume's eye twitched slightly, feeling her own body react to the yawn against her will.

"Dammit, Kaze.. -yatsu..." Tsume growled between her own yawn, sending a glare down at Kuromaru when he opened his muzzle to do the same.

Kushina chuckled softly at this, her eyes opening for a bit before she dozed, slowly closing her eyes.

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **Maaaahh... Distractions distractions. x.x'

You readers have to step on my tail or something.. I've also been letting myself get distracted even though I want to type up the chapters. So don't be afraid to like. You know. Throw a brick in my direction or something in your reviews. D:  
But anyway, I'm off to a small vacation on the 17th, and I'll be returning on the 21st. I should have a chapter typed up, if my mum lets me bring the laptop along. o.o Normally I get good inspiration when I'm stuck alone at a hotel. xD'

The chapter is rather short this time, and obviously delayed. x.x Sorreh. (And god dammit, Orochimaru. Even though I practice writing you, your twisted personality still slips from my grasp. Dx)


	23. Love Like Winter

**Chapter XXIII: Love Like Winter**

Kushina opened her eyes again and blinked in surprise when she was staring up drowsily at the ceiling of their apartment. She could've sworn that she'd only closed her eyes for a only a second to rest. Her spine cracked a couple of times at her movement, making the kunoichi flinch and pause for a few seconds. Her eyes flickered around her, observing that she was on the floor- which was probably most of the reasons why her back was so sore. A heavy sigh rolled off her tongue when she turned her gaze towards the window, finding the sky bleached an odd mixture between orange and gray.

She fell asleep again.

The red-haired kunoichi shook her head warily and shifted to lie back down on the floor. Then a deadpan crossed her face as she wondered why she was on the _floor_. _Then_ she remembered that she was still wearing the same, torn clothes from the battle and that she was layered with dust.

She sighed again and warily pushed herself to her feet, stumbling forward a few steps and then balancing herself by outstretching her arms to either side of her. The long periods of sleep obviously left her disoriented. Kushina only continued to stumble forward towards the bathroom. She heard a snort (from Daylian, she guessed), but was too tired to look over her shoulder. The kunoichi was only focusing on getting to the bathroom without face-planting into the wall or floor or anything.

Kushina managed to succeed in not falling, entering the bathroom and grimacing at the steam that was trapped in. So Daylian had taken a shower and didn't bother waking her so she could have a turn. Though he probably got out just a little while ago, judging from the foggy mirror and wet floor.

She rolled her eyes and tugged off her scarf so that it was loose enough to slip from her neck, then proceeded to peel off the rest of her clothing from her dusty body. Her mouth twitched at the amount of dust that was tracked onto the floor, sighing since she decided that she'd clean it later. _Much later_. Kushina stepped into the water when she turned the dial, ducking her head to let the hot water hit her hair and shoulders first.

Another deadpan expression formed on her features at the brown water that was draining. She sighed and moved to get other parts of her body soaked, blindly looking around for the soap so she could wash the rest of the dust and dirt off. Kushina was careful to avoid the scratches on her body, especially her injured forearm, which was covered with bandages instead of torn clothing thanks to Tsunade.

Kushina knew that she was going to be in the shower for a while, getting rid of the layers of dirt in her hair and body. She thought back to the battle (obviously _avoiding_ the scene with a certain pale-faced Hebi Sennin) and snorted at herself.

During the battle in Kusa, she clearly didn't do much at all except for charge forward and help a little with Daylian's Suiton... The previous battle, on the other hand. The kunoichi paused from where her hands were tiredly raised and washing her hair.

An ice jutsu...

_How'd I do that?_ Kushina wondered in disappointment, hoping that it wasn't just a one-time fluke. Ice wasn't exactly a common elemental and she wanted to have surprise on her side if she could somehow master it.

_Maybe it has something to do with the wind...? I _was_ trying to use it to increase the speed of the water... But ice came out instead, dattebayo. _Kushina paused her cleaning again and stuck out her lower lip in a slight pout. She shrugged and scrubbed her hair again with the shampoo, digging deeply to get whatever dirt from her scalp.

_I'll just go ask Minato about it later, then._

"..." Kushina fell silent and lowered her arms back down to her sides. Her face reddened with a bit of the pouting expression still there. She snorted a bit and rubbed her cheek, tilting her head forward to let the hot water wash out the shampoo from her red hair.

_Can't believe I actually _kissed_ him._ She grumbled inwardly. _I dunno what happened, even... I blanked out for a second or _something_, datte'sa... _

Her face reddened to the point where her cheeks were growing sore from the pooling blood, making her grumble even further. She tried her best to ignore this pain and lathered her hair with some conditioner, accustom to the citrus scent it gave off.

The kunoichi's eyes just stared blankly down at an angle, unable to stop the smirk that was slowly, crookedly stretching across her face. _He's not a bad kisser._

After she got the rest of the conditioner out of her hair, Kushina turned off the water and shook her hair a bit, then took a towel from one of the racks and wrapped it around herself. The kunoichi wrung her hair out a bit and then stepped from the tub, kicking her clothes to a pile in the corner of the bathroom.

Kushina ran her hand across the foggy mirror and examined her reflection, noting a clean scratch she got on her cheek as well as one on her collarbone. She shook her head and decided that they weren't deep, keeping the towel wrapped securely around her body as she lowered to pick up the scarf that was given to her.

The kunoichi opened the door and instantly shuddered at the clear temperature difference between the rooms, half tempted to just stay in the bathroom while it was still warm. She sighed and shuddered again, moving forward to the drawer that held her night clothes.

Daylian glanced at her from the corner of his eyes and sharply returned his gaze back upwards when he saw that she only had a towel. He was on the floor again, with the thick bed sheet underneath him to use as comfort. One leg was crossed over the other and his arms were folded beneath his head. A crooked frown was barely visible on his face as the room darkened to match with the night scene outside.

There was a change in expression as the frown formed into a scowl. He still couldn't get the image of the odd Iwa ninja he had seen. There was just.. _something_ about that one ninja that wouldn't really give him a peace of mind. _Teal hair? _Daylian thought as he continued to scowl.

He gave a soft growl and then rolled onto his side, his back turned to where Kushina was getting dressed. _And I can't put my finger on the faint scent he gave off._

"What's wrong, nii-san?" Kushina questioned as she hopped over the older ninja and flopped onto the bed, happy that it was no longer occupied by her brother-by-law.

"Nothing." Daylian grunted in response, folding one arm beneath him to makeshift as a pillow.

Kushina peered down at him from the edge of the bed, shrugging and squirming to find a comfortable spot on the mattress. She found the sweet spot and smiled to herself as she wiggled to settle in, yawning a bit before she was out again.

Daylian only continued to frown, his brain searching his oldest memories to try and find any recognition of the teal-haired Iwa ninja he saw.

* * *

"..." Minato's blue gaze stared dazedly forward, pupils dilating slightly and then widening to try and focus. He blinked several times to try and help his eyes adjust, before he groaned and found out where he was. He shifted his bare feet and felt the flooring beneath him, only confirming his guess. The blond shook his head and warily pushed himself up to his feet.

Okay, so he dropped off Kushina, came home, took a shower, and then collapsed before he could even completely exit the bathroom.

Well at least no one saw him sleeping on the floor, part way in both the hallway and the bathroom. He sighed and shook his head, ruffling his damp hair and wondering how long he was sleeping.

Minato trailed down the dark hallway and unconsciously towards his room as he mentally calculated the time. Arrived in the village in the middle of noon, dropped off Kushina.. came home and then took a shower. Now it was completely dark with barely any noises outside.

The blond ruffled his hair again and then looked over at his clock, blinking at the time. _2 am? I was asleep that long? ... And on the floor, no less. _A wary sweat drop rolled down the side of Minato's face as he sighed. He shook his head and decided against eating at this late hour, despite his stomach demanding that he ate.

Minato trailed towards his bed, pausing when he received another large growl. He sighed and placed a hand over his stomach, the hunger pangs getting the best of him.

So he turned around and moved towards the door, stumbling tiredly over a couple of dulled weapons on the floor. He only ignored this and trailed down the hall and down the stairs, stumbling on the last step blindly and hitting the wall opposite of the stair.

Minato groaned a bit and just decided to lean against the wall to rest a bit, trying to ignore the pounding headache he got when his forehead slammed into the wall. After several seconds his stomach snarled, making him jump slightly.

"Hai, hai..." The blond obeyed and got up from the wall to trail into the small kitchen. Minato opened the fridge and squinted against the light, slouching heavily to peer into the glowing box. "..."

Well there wasn't much to eat... So he just took a bowl of wrapped rice and stuck it in the microwave. As he waited for the food to heat up, his eye lids began drooping downwards. Then the microwave beeped loudly against the quiet air, making him jump and sigh.

Tiredly he opened the small door and took the bowl of rice as well as a pair of chopsticks. He trailed aimlessly into the room, his shoulder bumping into the wall and making him have to stumble around it tiredly.

Why was he doing this again? ... Oh, right. His stomach.

Minato sighed heavily and just started eating on his slow journey up the stairs, sluggishly transferring the rice to his mouth. By the time he got to his room, the small portion of food was gone, making him sigh and decide against putting it in the sink right now.

The blond placed the rice bowl on his small side table next to his clock, staring down at one of the chopsticks that fell and clattered to the wooden floor. "..."

He just decided to be lazy and climb into his bed. He ignored the aches in his joints- particularly his legs -and slumped into his messy bed sheets, closing his eyes.

When he opened them again, there was sunlight.

He cringed at the intense light which was shining directly in his eyes, squinted, and then rolled over to have his back against the sunlight. With his eyes half closed, his blue gaze rolled rather lazily towards his clock, wondering how he managed to wake up rather early in the morning.

And then he remembered that he'd collapsed for a few hours on his floor.

Minato sighed and rolled once more, this time onto his back and outstretching his arms as far as his bed would allow. He should probably start sleeping in his parents' room... The bed was starting to be too small.

"..." Minato's mouth twitch. _There's no point in living in a big house alone... Might as well find a smaller apartment or something._

"..." The blond squirmed, suddenly feeling alone and small in the large house. It was rather lonely...

Just as the blond Jounin finished that thought, he heard a couple of light knocks against wood. He blinked and sat up in his bed, his gaze rolling upwards as if concentrating. There were a few more knocks, and Minato blinked a bit. He quickly got to his knees and unbolted his window, sliding it open and sticking his head as well as his torso out the window.

"I'll be down in a bit!" Minato quickly called, before withdrawing his body and closing the window.

He wildly looked around his messy room, sighing and quickly slipping on some Jounin underclothing. As he glanced at the clock, noting that it was already 9 in the morning, he remembered the rice bowl he left the much early in the same morning. Minato quickly scooped up the chopstick on the floor and took the rest of his finished meal downstairs with him.

"Just a moment...!" Minato yelled when there were a few impatient knocks. He dashed into the kitchen and dumped the rice bowl in the sink, turning on the water to fill the dish up slightly before slamming the faucet off and darting to the door.

"Sorry..!" The blond yanked the door open, panting slightly.

"Did you just wake up?" Daylian questioned with a brow arching. Kushina smiled lightly in response, her breathing visible in the cold air outside.

Minato blushed slightly at the sight of the kunoichi, barely noticing the cold air that was attacking the warm air inside of the house. "Ano... Ohayo, Kushina, Daylian-san..." He greeted softly.

"Alrighty then. You're here, he's awake..." Daylian muttered as he turned around, hands in the pockets of his coat. "See ya."

"Huh?" Minato blinked.

"Little 'Shina can't walk by herself... Plus she'd get lost since all the buildings look the same when there's snow coverin' them." Daylian commented over his shoulder, trailing into the snow-covered streets and leaving behind footprints. "I've got some errands to run..."

"I can walk myself!!" Kushina spun around and protested to her older brother, though the action was mostly to hide her embarrassment from Minato.

"Not." Daylian replied bluntly. Without another word he vanished in a shunshin, some snow being kicked up from the speed.

Minato only continued to blink several times in response to the quick departure before he shifted to move aside. "Uh... Come in... I'll get dressed.."

"Thanks..." Kushina mumbled as she scraped the snow off her zori and then entered the house, savoring the warm air. She grinned at this and tugged at the new scarf around her neck, and then raised her arms to stretch a bit.

"Did you just wake up?" She repeated Daylian's question as she turned her head to glance around the living room to examine the furniture.

"Uh. Sorta. I was already awake by the time you two came..." Minato responded as he trailed to the stairs. He glanced back at the kunoichi and then jutted his chin in the direction of the couch. "I'll be down in a bit.. Make yourself comfortable..."

"Will do." Kushina grinned and happily obliged, settling down on the couch and sinking into the cushions slightly. The kunoichi watched Minato move up the stairs in a rushed manner, making her smile in amusement. Eventually the warmth and the comfortable seating made her doze, so she barely noticed the blond returning a minute or so later.

"Did you want to go somewhere...?" Minato asked while he was tying on his hitai-ate, arms raised and blue eyes staring at her curiously.

The question jolted Kushina out of her daze and she reactively nodded her head rapidly a few times. "Uh, yeah! The-" she cleared her throat again, as if regaining her composure, "The training grounds, I guess... I wanted to ask you about something that happened during the battles, dattebayo..."

Minato lowered his arms and then tilted his head. His blue gaze slid from the kunoichi over to his father's den, where the heater was, and he moved towards the aforementioned room. "Ask away."

Kushina guessed that he was going to turn down the heater slightly and got to her feet, refraining from just sitting back down on the comfortable furniture. "Well... What d'you know about ice jutsus, 'te'sa?"

_Ice? _Minato blinked. He paused with his hand on the dial for the heater and thought for a few seconds before responding. "Uh... I know about them, but not too much since it's an uncommon element..." He replied loudly enough so that she could hear in the other room.

The blond turned the heating-system down to a suitable temperature and nodded, spinning around to leave the room and rejoin Kushina. "Why do you ask?"

"Because in the middle of the battle.. When I was trying to use a Suiton, ice came out instead... I mean.. I know it was cold, dattebayo, but water with chakra in it shouldn't freeze that easily." Kushina pointed out, waving her hand slightly as she explained.

"True..." Minato murmured. He motioned towards the door with his hand, and then hesitated for a couple of seconds when he held out the same hand to the kunoichi.

Kushina blinked in surprise at this and then blushed slightly. With a bit of haste, she took hold of his hand, as if he were going to withdraw it.

Minato smiled, a grin replacing that expression a few seconds later as he guided her out of the house and onto the snow-covered streets. Not even within a minute of walking, a familiar voice shattered the silent, cold air.

"Kushinaaaaa!!"

When the scream first started, the two jumped and then froze, shoulders visibly stiffening and the grips on each other's hands tightening. About two seconds after the end of the screaming, Sae tackled Kushina from behind. Minato, still holding onto Kushina's hand, barely managed to keep the two of them suspended in mid-air.

"S-Sae..." Kushina grumbled as she was clung to by the blond, feeling her shoulder beginning to strain against Sae's added weight.

"Sae-chan.. Kushina-chan's arm is going to dislocate unless you get off..." Mikoto's calm voice murmured softly. Sae grumbled and released her red-haired friend, tumbling into the snow with a soft grunt.

Since Minato was pulling on Kushina's arm to keep her from falling, they both tumbled backwards onto the ground. Minato groaned, having landed flat on his back with Kushina on his stomach. After cringing a couple of seconds in pain, he stiffened and realized the position they were in, his chin tilting towards his chest to look up at her. Kushina was already staring back at him with wide eyes and a thick line of blush across her face.

"Ah! S-S-Sorry!!" Kushina stammered as she immediately sat up to get off the blond. She barely registered Sae's laughing, the Yamanaka rolling around in the snow and holding her stomach.

"Sae-chan... Be polite." Mikoto sighed as she pulled Kushina up to her feet, holding her hand out to Minato when he sat up. Minato only stared up at Mikoto dazedly with his face a comical shade of red.

"Ah, uh, ano... Mi.. koto-san?" Minato managed to get out of his mouth, staring up at her and remaining on the ground like confused child. The Uchiha kunoichi nodded at this with a light smile to go with it.

"Hai... I'm sorry; I should have grabbed Sae-chan.. but she's actually pretty fast when she's excited..."

"It's okay, I guess?" Kushina sighed. She released Mikoto's hand to brush off the snow from her layered clothing, her eyes trailing over to her blond Yamanaka friend when she got up as well.

"I'm sorry... But I heard about the battles.. and there were so many bodies that the Anbu brought back, so I was worried since you didn't come visit..." Sae explained.

Kushina only tilted her head at the unfamiliar word that Sae spoke of. "An.. bu?"

"It's actually short for Ansatsu Senjutsu Tokushu Butai.. They're an elite group that serves directly under the Hokage.." Mikoto explained. Kushina only deadpanned at the much _longer_ name for the organization, inwardly deciding to stick with the shorter and easier name.

"I kinda passed out on the way back to the village..." Kushina rubbed her cheeks to try and get the blood flowing again.

"That's rather understandable..." Mikoto glanced over at Sae. "Though I'm glad you two are unharmed... There have been a number of casualties and the hospital's been really busy."

Kushina, practically forgetting all about the embarrassing scene a minute ago, folded her arms behind her head. "Well... If we're still here, it just proves how strong we are, right?" She questioned in a too-casual tone.

Minato warily smiled at her, though in the back of his mind he was half convinced that the ninja in their age group had managed to survive with a decent amount of luck on their side. Though he pushed this thought away when the two newcomers spoke in a little more of a grave tone, just barely catching what they were saying.

"... Should be careful, either way, Kushina-chan..." Sae glanced over at the older kunoichi. "We've seen some of those bodies... It's... rather saddening, actually... We're just concerned for you."

Kushina stared at the two for several seconds and then grinned. "Don't worry! I won't go down that easily, 'te'sa!"

Mikoto smiled softly at the younger kunoichi. "... We'll let you go then... It seemed like you two were going somewhere together." Her onyx gaze flickered over to the blond for a brief second. The Uchiha also placed a hand on Sae's shoulder to keep her from protesting. "It was nice seeing you again, Namikaze-kun..."

"A-ah! Ha-hai! Nice seeing y-you too, Mikoto-san..!!" Minato jumped when he was addressed, stammering several times. It was obvious that he didn't shake off that embarrassment earlier like Kushina did.

In a rather hasty manner, he took Kushina's hand when the other two kunoichi turned around and pulled her into a swift Shunshin.

"Huh? Minato..?" Kushina questioned as if sensing the sudden urgency. She winced when she felt her back being pressed against the rough bark of a tree, a bit too forcefully. The kunoichi squeezed her eyes shut and cringed while trying to regain some of the breath that was knocked out of her.

When she opened her eyes, Minato's face was close to hers. Instantly her cheeks grew warm, unable to move away from the blond with her back flat against the tree.

"..." Minato's eyes were half-closed, as if avoiding her gaze slightly. He panted somewhat through his nose, his breaths misty in the cold air, and then pressed his mouth against hers without a word.

Kushina would have melted if it were possible, with her own eyes slowly sliding downwards. She could feel her mind beginning to spin and would have probably collapsed if she wasn't pinned against the tree. She barely registered the fact that her mouth was carefully forced open, feeling something warm against her lower lip. Kushina's breathing hitched but she timidly moved her own tongue forward to his, withdrawing it almost instantly at the touch.

Minato's eyebrows knotted at the kunoichi's hesitation and angled his head. He leaned deeper into the kiss after hearing a softly, barely audible moan from the kunoichi.

_Damn_, this felt good to him-

His blue eyes suddenly flew open and he jerked his body slightly, hastily pulling away from the kiss and flinging several shuriken in one direction. Minato panted slightly with his arm still raised, eyes blank as if trying to regain his composure. Kushina only feverishly opened her eyes partway, shoulders rising and falling in small pants as she stared at the blond, her face flushed.

"Whoa, whoa... Didn't have to go and do that..." Jiraiya mumbled after he caught all the shuriken, deciding against flinging them back to the blond Jounin. "But _wowww_... I _really_ didn't expect _this_..."

Minato only continued to stare at his white-haired sensei with his cheeks growing unbearably hot, even in the cold weather. The corner of his mouth twitched and he slowly shifted to move away from Kushina, but she held onto his sleeve before he could get far.

"Uh, errr.. I'll just leave... Since your hormones seem to be raging at the moment..." Jiraiya coughed into his fist and turned around, not sure what he was supposed to be feeling after seeing his student make out with a girl.

"Sensei..." Minato grumbled with a disappointed expression to cover up his embarrassment. His mouth twitched and he rubbed his cheeks, trying to figure out what to say before he glanced down at Kushina. The kunoichi still seemed to be in a daze, swaying on her feet as if dizzy. The blonds' brain suddenly jolted back to the reason Kushina had come to see him to begin with, eyes widening slightly before shooting back to his sensei.

"Ah... W-wait, sen..sei!" Minato cringed at his stuttering. Jiraiya paused in mid-step and peered over his broad shoulder. "...?"

"Do you.. err, know anything about.. you know.. Ice types?" Minato pursed his lips, hoping the topic will get _all_ of their minds off what happened a few seconds ago... He glanced down at Kushina and placed a hand on her shoulder to shake her gently back to reality.

Kushina jumped and then stiffened at the touch, eyes wide as her gaze flickered up to Minato. She finally sensed Jiraiya's presence and slowly, hesitantly glanced over at him, soon feeling her cheeks flare a bright red. _How long was he there?! Ugh, that perv! _She carefully squirmed to try and move behind the blond Jounin, as if to hide herself from Jiraiya.

Jiraiya rubbed the back of his neck. "Err... Ice types? Yeah, I know a few things about 'em... Got a new jutsu idea in mind?" He questioned with a light hand motion. The awkward tone in his voice was really obvious.

"No..." Minato shook his head and rubbed his own neck. He turned his head to look at the kunoichi that was slowly inching behind him, clinging to his free arm and pressing up to his side. "When Kushina was fighting someone during the battle with Iwa... she tried for a Suiton but Hyoton came out instead."

"Mm..." Jiraiya dropped his arms back down to his sides and coughed a couple of times. "Well... What kind of chakra nature do you have, Kushina?" He questioned with the awkward tone still notable.

"... Water.. I'm sure..." Kushina mumbled, her voice muffled from Minato's vest.

"How sure are you?"

"... I dunno..."

"..." Jiraiya faked a fifth cough. "You... want to find out, then...?"

"... Sure?" Kushina's arms coiled more tightly around Minato's. "How?"

"Uh." The white-haired Jounin sighed and took his weapon pouch, opening it and digging through it. ".. Good, I have a few left." Jiraiya shrugged. "Hope they don't expire." He added under his breath as he took out a few slips of paper, replacing his weapon pouch onto his lower back.

_Paper?_ Kushina frowned against Minato's shoulder with a brow unconsciously quirking.

"I haven't seen some of those in a while..." Minato murmured.

"Yup... Though from Kushina's look..." Jiraiya shrugged and took one of the slips. "It reacts to your chakra... How it reacts all depends on your chakra nature..." He shifted to move forward, hesitating the first couple of steps, but sighed and moved forward to hold out the paper.

Minato glanced back down at the kunoichi, and then reached out with his free hand to take one of the slips. "All you have to do is focus your chakra." He explained

"..." Kushina reached out with one hand, keeping her other locked around Minato's arm, and gingerly look the paper. She held it out at arms length, as if expecting it to explode if she focused. A few seconds later, the paper flopped forward, drenched and cold against the snow. Kushina blinked in surprise.

"Yup... Water's definitely yours." Jiraiya shifted and placed the rest of the paper away. "So you-"

"Wait... What's yours?" Kushina interrupted to look up at Minato. He blinked a bit before he sheepishly grinned and held up the paper square he was holding. It slit perfectly down the middle a second later, the blond now holding two separate slips between his index finger and thumb.

Kushina only stared at the pieces blankly. "..."

"That means he's got wind chakra." Jiraiya explained in a matter-of-fact tone. "Wind slices in half, fire turns to ashes, lightning wrinkles the paper, water drenches it, and earth... shreds, if I remember right." He shrugged. "But since you don't have wind, then I don't see how you managed to make an ice jutsu.. Unless you have two chakra natures?"

"No...?"

Jiraiya only shrugged simply. "Well I don't know, then... Maybe it was just a fluke."

"Maybe..." Kushina grumbled in disappointment, dropping the paper and leaning against Minato with a frown. The blond tilted his head slightly and looked down at her, before he sheepishly grinned.

"... I know that grin, 'Nato. What've you got in that brain of yours?" Jiraiya questioned, arms folding and a brow rose.

"We both have the right qualifications to combine our chakra natures... and make a new jutsu or two..." Minato's grin stretched a bit, rubbing the back of his neck. "If that's even possible."

"It's not _im_possible," Jiraiya pointed out. "_If_ you both can draw out your nature chakras. I'm sure you can figure it out from there, 'Nato."

"Just how do you do that?" Kushina questioned, eyes clearly curious at the mention of new jutsus. The fact that she would be apart of it made her beam ever so slightly. "Draw out your chakra nature, I mean..."

"..." Minato stared down at her in silence. Eventually his mouth twitched and his sheepish grin disappeared.

"... And there's the back draw of that plan." Jiraiya sighed as he rubbed the back of his neck. "You completely forgot about it, Minato... It can take months just to manipulate your chakra nature..."

_Months?_ Kushina's eyes widened at this as her gaze rolled back to Minato. The corner of the blond's mouth twitched as he stared down at the snow-covered ground. Eventually his blue eyes slowly moved back towards the kunoichi.

"... We might as well try?" Minato grinned a bit. "It might take a while... but Hyoton is definitely worth it, right?"

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **D: ... My school started. -sigh- Been busy.. Sorry for the lateness... x.x' Blah blah homework.. Seems like I won't be able to sleep in any of my classes this year.. Sadness.

Hahhh... So uhm. -coughs- Yeahhh... xD; That one part in the chapter (and don't give me that 'lol what part?' stuff.. You guys know.) was... awkward for me to type out? xD; I still have to get use to actually.. Blah. Describing that stuff.

... You can so tell that I was running out of things to type for a while. xD; Rather short chapter... I'm sorry.. u.u' I'll try and get some more freetime to type.. -sighsigh-


	24. Ai Ta Kokoro

**Chapter XXIV: Ai Ta Kokoro**

"Hokage-sama."

His hand paused at the title and honorific, half-way done with completing the complicated kanji being written on the scroll. A second later his hand moved again with the old pen between his thumb and index finger, continuing the letter.

"What exactly happened...?" Sarutobi didn't have to look up. He could smell the drying blood coming from the center of his office, and the tired tone in the Anbu's voice only made it more obvious.

"Ambushed by Kumo Anbu, Sandaime-sama..." The leader stepped forward with a tightly bandaged arm, the sleeve of his uniform torn away so that the wound could be properly tended to. "... We lost the other three platoons..."

"..." Sarutobi closed his eyes and sighed softly. He finished the letter he was writing and placed down the pen so that he could lean back in his chair, exhaling heavily. "How many has that been all together since this war started?"

"... At least eight platoons worth of Anbu.. sir." The monkey-masked ninja replied after a large pause. "Our numbers are growing smaller..."

"... Perhaps its time to recruit a few more.." Sarutobi shook his head. "I already have a few in mind who can take the test... I'm just hope they're more than willing to agree..."

"If I may suggest something, Hokage-sama?" A female voice filled the room, her voice also weary. "Just make it an order for them to join the Anbu... There's more than enough Jounin and Chuunin in the village..."

"..." The Sandaime closed his eyes again, allowing a long silence. "I'll make it a request... Send someone new back here in a few minutes.. I'll have a list of names ready. Get some rest and clean your wounds, all of you." He murmured. He opened his eyes and gazed at them, weariness visible beneath his serious look.

"Hai!" The platoon spoke in unison before they vanished in swift Shunshins.

* * *

Daylian was humming to himself as he strode down the snow-covered streets, his hands stuffed into his pockets to keep them warm. His coat was ruined during the battles, so he had to leave it behind (he told himself that he'd recycle it somehow), so he only wore a simple shirt and some old pants with his scarf wrapped tightly around his neck. Sure, he got several looks from passersby, but his violet eyes were looking upwards blankly as he continued to hum.

It was just one of those songs that got stuck in his head. He knew he'd probably be humming it all day.

But that's not important. What _is_ important that he got to finishing the errands.

And quickly because he was freezing just wearing those thin clothes.

Daylian's eye twitched when a chilling breeze rolled in, causing him to shudder. He lurched forward to run and get his blood moving through his veins so that he wouldn't _freeze_ to death before even reaching the store. He quickly ducked into a simple clothing shop, sighing in relief at the warm air. Thank god for long legs; It would have probably taken him a bit longer to get someplace warm.

"Oh my... Are you looking for a coat?" The female cashier was clearly startled at how little clothing Daylian was wearing.

"Yeah, that'd be nice..." Daylian muttered in response as he shook the snow from his hair, moving forward to browse through whatever coats and jackets the store had. He grimaced at the sight of some that had animal fur lining the hood, refraining from spitting on it as he moved to keep searching.

Eventually he picked out one that looked decent enough, taking it off the hanger and rudely throwing it onto the counter from where he was standing. The cashier jumped when the clothing landed suddenly before her.

"I'll take that one." Daylian murmured. After covering his mouth, barely, with his hand to yawn, he loped to the counter and dug through is pockets. If he heard the woman muttering under her breath, then he pretended not to have caught her words.

After he paid for the coat, he took it off the counter and tore off the tags, stuffing them in his pocket before shrugging the coat on. He grinned to himself when he felt much more warmer, exiting the shop without bothering to look at the clerk.

_Now to get down to business..._ Daylian thought to himself as he trailed down one street. He would be a bit early to get to his destination, but honestly, that was only because he had nothing else to do back at the apartment. For the past... few days, was it? The redhead was leaving early to go off and train with Minato on some new jutsu. Ah well. Daylian took this opportunity to get Minato's "Christmas gift" while Kushina was out of the house (or apartment, as he should be saying.) She probably would have spoiled it and blabbed to her _boyfriend_ about it anyway.

He huffed a sigh, his breath visible in the air for a couple of seconds. The black-haired ninja shook his head and trotted forward to move down the streets.

Daylian left several footsteps behind in the snow as he continued to wander, his pace eventually slowing as he reached a more smaller, urban part of the village. The black-haired Uzu ninja came to a halt in front of a small building with the door wide open. With his hands in his pockets, his gaze rolled downwards at the lack of snow in front of the entrance. He shrugged and poked his head in through the doorway.

"Oiii, Yuichi... Have you died from old age yet?"

There was a loud, near-deafening clang before the old man glared over his shoulder. The look eventually faded as he saw who it was, eyes softening before he grinned through the tobacco between his teeth.

"He-ey...! Kiddo... Day-kun, wasn't it?"

"Eh, you were close." Daylian deadpanned and stepped into the warm building. He wrinkled his nose at the smoke that was slightly trapped inside, coughing a bit and covering his mouth and nose with his sleeve. "You shouldn't be smoking at this age, _ojii_-san."

"What's your point? I'm old enough to do anything I want." Yuichi growled with the cigarette moving as he spoke. He shook his head and returned his gaze back to the front, raising his hand and bringing down the hammer on the glowing metal. Daylian flinched at the loud clang but only remained silent, waiting for Yuichi to finish whatever he was working on.

Yuichi snorted as if sensing Daylian waiting. He took the glowing metal with the large prongs and dipped it in the water, making the room more haze-covered as the hot steam rose up. Daylian cringed. No wonder the door was open.

"So what do you want?" Yuichi asked without looking up. He raised the crafted metal and examined the new blade, turning it and making sure that it was of good quality.

"Just wonderin' if you can make some kunais..."

"Too easy." Yuichi muttered, motioning with his hand towards another doorway. "There's some in there."

"Custom made?"

"..." Yuichi finally looked over his shoulder after putting the newly-made weapon down, a brow arching. "Keep talking..."

"A little more weight? Okay maybe not a little... Maybe about four or five kilograms more than the average kunai?"

Yuichi kept his brow raised. "I think I can do that for ya... How much you want?" He questioned, taking the cigarette out of his mouth and flicking it into the tank of water. Daylian shrugged in response.

"Just one for now... If it works out, I might come back later." The black-haired nin replied.

"Hmph... I'll get started on that tomorrow, in that case." Yuichi shrugged and got up with a grunt. He stretched a bit, making a few of his bones crack back into place. "What's the sudden order for? Yourself?"

Daylian simply raised his shoulders and let them drop. "My sister-in-law's boyfriend."

Yuichi was on his way to putting the new blade in the storage space behind the other door, pausing at Daylian's words. He blinked several times and then looked over at the teenager. "The little one with the red hair?"

"That's 'Shina alright." Daylian nodded. Yuichi whistled a bit and proceeded to move towards the storage.

"Got herself one already, hmm? How old is she? Fourteen?"

"She turned fifteen a few months ago..."

"Haha.. What's he like?"

"Why?"

"Well I'm making the kunai for him, aren't I?"

"True..."

"..." Yuichi opened the old door and skimmed the labels on the shelves, before finally pulling out a long drawer and sticking the fresh blade with the other ones that were to be sent to other craftsmen. "Okayyy.. What's his name then?"

"Bl-... Minato. Namikaze or something other." Daylian corrected himself before he could call Minato by his nickname. "He's about the same age as 'Shina.. Already a Jounin."

"One of those talented kids, huh?" Yuichi closed the drawer and then the door. He turned around and walked back towards where the fire was, staring at it for several seconds before lowering down to grab the bucket next to the tank of water. "Speed-oriented, right?"

"Hit the nail on the hammer." Daylian nodded a bit.

"Hah..." Yuichi paused and then shook his head, falling silence as he extinguished the fire with the bucket of water. "I hope they know what they're getting themselves into..."

"..." Daylian looked over at the weapon smith at this. "What do you mean?"

Yuichi sighed and reached into the pockets of his apron to pull out a box. He flipped the lid open and pulled out a fresh cigarette, making Daylian roll his eyes. Though Yuichi only stuck the tobacco into his mouth without lighting it.

"It's a dangerous job; being a shinobi... Especially with this god-blasted war going on." Yuichi scowled a bit. "Either of them could get killed..."

"..." Daylian chose to remain silent, which only beckoned Yuichi to go on.

"You know my daughter got involved with a shinobi once." The old smith exhaled a long sigh as he slowly seated himself. "You know what happened?"

"... He went out on a mission and got killed?"

"Pretty much. She went depressed for the longest time... Then she eventually committed suicide."

Daylian's eyes went wide for a second, pupils narrowing. Yuichi sighed and finally decided to light his cigarette.

"That's right... So my second daughter took this as an example not to date a shinobi... Because all of them eventually lead to the same fate." Yuichi eyed Daylian through the light smoke drifting upwards from the end of the lit stick. He raised his hand and dragged his thumb horizontally across his throat.

"..." Daylian thought about the older man's words for several seconds. He closed his eyes after a while and sighed himself, trying his best to ignore the smoke. "I'm pretty aware of that... I'm sure Minato knows that too..." Violet eyes opened again to stare at Yuichi. "Kushina knows this subconsciously... That's why they're training so hard.. To make sure that they don't die on eachother, you know?"

The black-haired ninja chuckled a bit under his breath. "They won't die so early... I can sense this."

"..." It was Yuichi's turn to fall silent, before he took a long drag of the cigarette and sighed. "Suit yourselves... Suppose this is why I make weapons... To help you guys defend yourselves." He took another drag. "And this village."

Daylian snorted, making Yuichi raise his brow. The smithsman flicked his hand at Daylian.

"Bahh, get out of here already. Stop by in a couple of days and I should be done with it." Yuichi growled. Daylian grinned a bit and nodded. He spun on his heels, shoved his hands into his pockets and stepped out of the warm building and into the cold streets, humming to himself.

* * *

Minato stretched his back as he yawned, then promptly dropped his arms down to his sides. His blue eyes glanced around the darkening house and then he sighed, relaxing against the couch and letting his sore limbs rest. Another day of unsucessful training... Bah. Why'd chakra natures have to be so hard to draw out anyway?

The blond stretched again and sluggishly got up from the couch, trailing up the stairs and into the bathroom to take a shower. He untied his hitai-ate and placed it on the counter, proceeding to strip off the rest of his clothing. Minato flinched and clutched his forearm for a second, slowly releasing it after a few seconds.

"..."

Well, that's what he got for straining too much.

Minato shook his head and turned on the water, waiting for it to warm up before he stepped into the shower. He inhaled the light steam that was rising up from the hot water, feeling the rest of his body warm instantly. Sighing contently, the blond ran his fingers through his hair to get rid of whatever knots were entangling it.

The blond Jounin was probably only in the shower for about five minutes when he froze, eyes flying open despite the water running down his face. His hands were up to his head, in the process of rinsing shampoo from his hair, as his blue eyes slowly looked over to his left, as if he could see through the tiled wall.

There were sharp, distinct chakra signatures jumping around within sensing distance.

Minato, with his arms still raised to his hair, bit his lower lip and narrowed his eyes slightly (though it was mostly because soap was running into his eyes). _Are they coming towards...?_ He stayed put long enough until the shampoo was completely rinsed from his head, and he hastily lowered his arms and turned off the water. Minato flung the shower curtains aside and grabbed a towel from the rack to wrap around his waist.

He opened the door but vanished in a shunshin before he could even pass through it, reappearing in his room to quickly grab a set of clothing to quickly throw on.

"..." Minato slipped on some pants and glanced towards his window, then frowned a bit and tugged a sweater on. His sudden haste from earlier was now toned down, walking slowly down the hall as he sensed the chakra flares approaching.

Half-way down the stairs, there was a few light raps on the front door.

"..." The corner of the blond's mouth twitched into a half-frown. He paused for several seconds and then finally moved again, approaching the front door and opening it. "... May I help you...?"

Minato barely had to look up at the Anbu, his eyes nearly level with the mask ninja's. Against the pale moonlight, the white mask glowed faintly.

"Our apologizes for approaching late into the evening." He started.

_It's barely past eight, but what do you want? _Minato thought warily, though he made sure his face didn't portray it. "It's no problem..."

"Just a small... Request, from Hokage-sama..." The Anbu shifted beneath the cloak that was concealing the rest of his body, his arm reaching out from behind the said cloak and handing a scroll forward.

"Burn it after you read it." A second Anbu muttered from behind his senpai. "We need to get going to the rest of them."

"Of course, kouhai... Be patient..." The first ninja turned his hidden gaze back to Minato. "Good night, Namikaze-san." He dipped his head, before vanishing in a blur, his junior disappearing half a second after.

"..." Minato closed the door and looked at the scroll in his hand. He turned the bolt on the door and blurred out of the room in a shunshin, reappearing again in his room. The blond Jounin sat on his bed and stared down at the thin scroll. He then slowly unrolled it, eyes lingering over the lettering.

"..." The corner of his mouth twitched again once he finished reading. Minato moved to place the scroll on his small side table and then rolled onto his back to stare up at the ceiling. He yawned a bit and carefully scratched the side of his neck, closing his eyes and sighing heavily, relaxing.

_Join Anbu, huh? ..._

* * *

_... He's kinda late today... _Kushina thought as a sigh of disappointment rolled off her tongue. She was currently crouching on the thin bank of the frozen stream, drawing idle doodles into the frost with a kunai point. A couple of minutes of aimless doodling, and the kunoichi soon grew bored. She got to her feet and stretched her calves, withdrawing the kunai to her holster. Kushina turned around and looked towards the direction of the village with the corner of her mouth twitching slightly.

Surely if a mission popped up, he'd atleast tell her, right? ...

"Of course he will... I just have to be more patience, 'te'sa..." Kushina folded her arms behind her head.

Five more minutes of waiting rewarded her.

Minato appeared in the snow, hands stuffed in his pockets to keep them warm. Kushina's eyes brightened at his showing, though the smile slowly faded when she saw the distracted look.

"Minato...?" The redhead questioned as she moved forward cautiously. The Jounin blinked and jumped slightly and looked up with a surprised expression, as if only realizing where he was.

"Oh... Kushina..." His already-flushed face smiled softly, shivering unconsciously against the frigid air. He closed the distance between the two of them with his long strides, wrapping his arm around her for warmth. Kushina smiled against his shoulder, shifting and wrapping her own arms around his neck.

The two stayed like that, with Minato rocking from side to side in little motions as he held her. Kushina shifted after this, leaning back slightly to look up at him.

"What's wrong...?"

Minato blinked again, as if being snapped out of a deep daze, and slowly smiled. "... You remember what Anbu is, right?" He murmured softly. Kushina paused for several seconds and then nodded a couple of times.

"Yeah... The elite group or something other." She responded.

"Last night I was requested to take an examination and join them..." Minato whispered it that time, as if he was afraid someone was listening in on them. Kushina tilted her head, gesturing for him to continue.

"I'm not sure if I want to or not... I've been thinking about it all last night." The blond closed his eyes for a second and sighed inaudibly. "All the information they have can probably open up several kinds of new ways for me to make some jutsus... But at the same time..." Minato trailed off, his arms tightening around Kushina's waist and he tilted his head to rest it against the side of hers.

"..." Kushina's eyes widened for a few seconds before softening. After several seconds in silence, when it seemed like Minato would never let go, she leaned back and carefully took his head with both hands. Kushina tiptoed slightly and kissed him for a few seconds, pulling away and looking up at him.

"Don't let me stop you." The kunoichi murmured with a small smile forming on her lips. "... But promise me you'll make some new jutsus that I can learn."

Minato's eyes were still half-closed from the kiss, mouth parted slightly as if slowly hungering for another one. He bit his lip when a couple of seconds passed, suppressing the urge before smiling.

"It's a promise." He murmured as he slowly released the kunoichi from the embrace.

"We're training extra hard today, got it?" Kushina jabbed him lightly in the chest, receiving a sheepish grin in return.

"Aah..."

* * *

Panic was slowly worming its way up Minato's throat as he paced around the house, much too early in the morning for comfort. He glanced out the window several times, as if expecting sunlight to peer in through the thin drapes. He shook his head when he saw no progress in the time and continued pacing.

God, he couldn't sleep last night.

Too anxious to even stay in bed for more than a couple of hours.

He sighed heavily and finally halted his hurried strides, scared of wearing down the flooring. Minato took several more seconds to breathe deeply, then groaned and flopped onto the couch. From there he stared up blankly at the dark ceiling while his fingers twiddled together anxiously.

So...

What exactly was he supposed to do?

Just go to the Hokage Tower... Meet the Sandaime himself... And then what? Just straight to the testing?

Minato groaned heavily again then leaned to the side so that he was laying down on the furniture. What was the test like anyway?

"..." The corners of his mouth twitched and he sighed, resting his arm over his eyes. _It's probably a drastic difference compared to the Jounin test... _He thought to himself, frowning slightly.

"..." Minato shook his head slightly and sighed, stifling a yawn and calming himself the best he could.

The next time he opened his eyes, there was pale sunlight coming in through the windows. He instantly jolted awake when he realized this, sitting up and glancing around to look for a clock. Minato relaxed when he found that it wasn't that late into the morning, shaking his head and rubbing his temple.

_Atleast I got a couple of hours of sleep in... _Minato slid off the couch and shunshin'd up the stairs to stretch his legs, appearing in his room to dress himself in the Jounin underclothing. He kept glancing out the window of his bedroom and sighed, raising his hands to tie his hitai-ate to his forehead, brushing his bangs so that they partially covered the metal plate.

His blue gaze flickered to the window again, this time to check the weather before he proceeded to take his scarf from atop his drawer. Minato wrapped the cotton around his neck and sighed heavily, moving to leave his room and head back downstairs.

Minato paused at the front door and stared at the wooden obstacle for several long seconds, placing his hand on the doorknob and sighing heavily a couple of times.

Opening the door and stepping through it, he glanced over his shoulder and into the house, gazing at it, knowing that he probably wouldn't be returning for a while. He shook his head and closed the door, vanishing in a Shunshin to make way towards the Hokage Tower.

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **School happened. D: I'm sorri! x.x But I'm trying to get straight A's this year... So that mum can buy me a new laptop to replace this slow junk. x.x Sigh. Hopefully all the work starts to slow down soon, so that I'll have more time to work on this. D:  
Alsoooo... The rating of this fic might be bumped up slightly. Mostly for language that's probably inevitably gonna happen. So... Sorry in advanced if you're offended by swear words... Though frankly these days, unless you're religious to the extreme, swearing is an every day vocabulary. (Frankly, it's quite a chunk in mines. xD')  
Buuut... Sorry in advance anyway. Because I don't know all of you so well. xD;;;


	25. Tsuki no Uta

**Chapter XXV: Tsuki no Uta**

"Well this is rather annoying..." Daylian muttered with a dark scowl on his face with his arms were folded as he leaned against the counter in their apartment, ignoring the cold surface against his back as he averted his gaze away from his sibling-by-law. He could sense Kushina sitting on the bed, staring at him with a deadpan expression that was also slightly frustrated. The aforementioned kunoichi folded her own arms across her chest and she quirked a brow.

"Yeah, it is annoying. Pretty annoying that you're not telling me what's so annoying in the first place. Just tell me already, nii-san..." The red-head muttered warily.

"..." Daylian's violet gaze rolled to rest on Kushina for a second. He shook his head and reached into his coat, flinging his arm out to the side. Kushina flinched when there was a rather heavy thunk, and then a clatter as metal met the wooden floor.

"... It's so heavy that I can't even make it stick into the wall." Daylian muttered. His eyes were looking down at the odd-shaped kunai that was lying helplessly on the floor. He shook his head and continued to brood against the counter. "And he left before I could give it to him."

Kushina only ignored what Daylian said, slowly slipping off the bed and approaching the custom-shaped kunai. She picked it up and her eyes widened slightly.

"... Are you kidding? How're you supposed to fight with this?" She growled.

"He said it was too light... It kept upsetting his balance whenever he used a regular kunai." Daylian explained.

Kushina stared down at the weighted weapon, then remembered that long ago that Minato used a weighted sword. She figured that the kunai was just a little bit below the same weight, though the exact sword's weight was rather vague to her. Her mouth twitched. After, she shook her head and took the kunai with her across the room, lowering down to pick up her weapon pouch and put it in there.

Daylian frowned at this. "... What're you-?"

"Holding onto it for now, datte'sa." Kushina responded as she fixed the bed sheets. The kunoichi placed the weapon pouch, which was noticeably heavier, on her hip and then proceeded to tie on her hitai-ate. "Gonna go train for a bit..." She explained as she wrapped one of her scarves around her neck.

"Hm." Daylian only shrugged a bit. "Sure... Are you going to be okay?"

"Yeah." Kushina responded bluntly as she made her way towards the door, tugging on the fingerless gloves and tightening the buckles around her wrists. She glanced at her brother-by-law once more, though he was staring out the window across the room from him. So Kushina shrugged a bit and exited the apartment, making her way down the stairs.

Her gaze trailed over to Retsuya's door for a few seconds, though she expected the elderly couple to be inside on the cold days. Kushina wrapped the scarf more securely around her neck when she felt a sneeze coming up.

The redhead walked down the snow-covered streets, though she took her time by taking slow strides. Hands were in her pockets and her head tilted upwards as she stared off into thin, cold air whilst walking. A light grin began to form before she turned her head to the side. The expression disappeared when she remembered that the taller blond was no longer there, making her slow to a complete halt in the middle of the snow-covered street.

"..." The corners of her mouth stretched a bit into a half-frown, feeling a pang of loneliness pick at her chest. Kushina lowered her head slightly and stared at the ground- and her feet -before sighing, shoulders dropping in sync.

"Kushina-channn!!"

Kushina blinked before she grinned at the familiar cry, spinning around to be greeted with a warm hug from the platinum-blond. "It's gotten cold, hasn't it?" Sae complained as she hugged her friend, shivering a bit despite wearing a couple of layers of warm clothing. Her crystal-blue eyes opened and looked from side to side, confusion entering shortly after her search.

"Eh? Where's Namikaze-kun?" Sae finally pulled away from the one-sided hug to look at her friend. Kushina's smile was slowly fading, though she was awkwardly trying to keep it on her face.

"Uhh... He joined Anbu for a little bit..." Kushina responded after finding the right words.

Sae tilted her head at this. "... Really? Hmm..." Sae folded her arms at this while her eyes looked upwards in a thinking manner. "So does that mean your guys' relationship is on the break...? I mean.. Anbu barely come to the village... They take up long-term missions, you know..."

"..." Kushina fell silent at this, the awkward smile that she was trying so hard to keep was gone by now. "Oh... We never really talked about that..."

"..." Sae blinked. After a while she waved her arms wildly. "Ahhh! I mean..! Uh... Ano... Oh, hey... Christmas is coming up! Why don't we do some shopping together?" Sae tilted her head forward for an answer. Kushina, with her hands still in her pockets the entire time, paused for several seconds as she thought about it.

"... Guess it wouldn't hurt, dattebayo..." Kushina mumbled after a while. Sae grinned a bit.

"Perfect! Okaa-san told me to go out and look for stuff... I'm actually kinda broke right now." The Yamanaka sobbed comically as she emptied her coat pockets. Kushina chuckled warily as well.

"We're kinda short on cash too... So we're on the same level..."

"Excellent!" Sae gave a thumbs up after stuffing the lining of her pockets back in. "Shall we go? Ohhh, maybe after we're done, we can go get some hot ramen or something!"

"I thought you said you were broke!"

"Well I have enough to afford a couple of meals.." Sae stuck her tongue out slyly, before linking arms with Kushina and pulling her a couple of steps forward. "Come on, come on! Let's go!"

"Okay, okay..." Kushina smiled warily at this, though her thoughts travelled a bit elsewhere for a few seconds.

_... He won't be gone long... _

"Hai, that's enough dozing for you, missie!" Sae interrupted her wishful thinking. "Focus is what we need, Kushina-chan!"

"Haha... If you say so..."

* * *

Adding onto the countless number of times, Daylian woke up to Kushina's soft sobs. He was lying on his back on the floor (At least he didn't have to worry about getting a bad back when he was older...), arms folded on his stomach and violet eyes staring up at the dark ceiling. His face was expressionless, listening to the soft sniffles that were audible from above.

Just like every time, he would turn onto his side, purposely rustling the sheets beneath him and faking a tired, soft yawn.

And every time, Kushina's crying would stop for several seconds, then resume after she thought Daylian had gone to sleep.

Daylian closed his eyes warily and frowned deeply, resting his head on his arm.

The first couple of times he caught Kushina crying, she just brushed it off and honestly replied that she missed Minato. Though after about the third time, the red-head was keeping the crying to herself. Whether that be during the nighttime, or when Daylian was taking a shower or running an errand.

Of course he knew.

Though what was annoying him was that her crying kept persisting, night after night. He refrained himself from gritting his teeth. When he scented Minato's return, the first thing he would do is kick the blonds' ass a little for making Kushina cry like this.

Or maybe a fast kick between the legs would be good enough.

* * *

"Kushina-channn... Come onnn... It'll be fun, I know it." Sae whined from where she was pushing against the front door of the apartment, trying to shove her way inside. Kushina was on the other side of the said door, leaning heavily against it to prevent the blond from entering. Kushina clearly underestimated Sae, having to practically press her face against the wood with both palms flat on the surface in order to keep the door from flying open.

"No. I don't do parties... Da-nii might want to go..." Hopefulness entered her eyes as she looked over her shoulder and at the lazy ninja who just lay on the bed with his arms and legs folded.

"I don't feel like it." Daylian shrugged.

"Why not, Kushina-chan? It's the New Year... How about we just do some fireworks instead, then? It looks like it's too late to get to the party..." Sae's voice drooped with disappointment at the last sentence. Kushina heard the rustle of paper bags and felt the door close slightly, before Sae gave a hard shove on the door to force some newly bought fire crackers through the slim opening.

"..." Kushina stared down at the package on the floor, before frowning. Head shaking, the kunoichi vanished in a shunshin away from the door, causing it to fling open and Sae topple to the ground sloppily. "Itai!"

Sae frowned and looked up at her red-haired friend pointedly. Kushina smirked a bit, cheeks flushing a bit from the cold air that swept in.

"Come on, nii-san..." The kunoichi called over her shoulder, bending to take Sae's extended arm and helping her up. Daylian raised a brow, before sighing and rolling off the bed, scooping up his scarf and wrapping it around his neck, pulling the fabric up over his mouth and nose.

"... The smoke always gives me a headache." He explained to the two after receiving odd looks. Kushina shrugged a bit and gathered her own warm clothing, which was among the several gifts she received from Sae on Christmas, moving to follow the excited, aforementioned blond out the apartment.

Daylian closed the door behind them and slowly trailed down the stairs, violet eyes flickering around and spotting several plumes of smoke rising up in the air from other parts of the village. He shrugged again and moved down the steps sloth like. By the time he reached the bottom, Sae had "pestered" the landlady and her husband out of their apartment.

"Ohoho... Okay, okay, Sae-chan... Slow down, I'm not as young as both of you..." Retsuya smiled softly as she was tugged on the wrist by the blond, being led out onto the street with Kushina at her side.

Daylian exchanged a glance with the landlord, who only glanced back with the same apathetic look as the older teenager. They both shrugged in silenced unison and followed the three women. By this point Sae was already lowered onto the ground and clearing out the remaining snow, putting the pack of fireworks down and pulling out a few of the sparklers, handing them up to Retsuya and Kushina.

Kushina tilted her head with a slight deadpan, before turning and passing the remaining two onto the men. Daylian took it with a deadpan of his own, staring down at the thin stick as if never seeing the object before.

"Fire, fire..." Sae mumbled, going through her coat pockets and then going through the ones on her pants. She frowned a bit, then nervously smiled up at the two ninja. "Ne..."

"..." Kushina exchanged equal deadpan glances with her brother-by-law, before sighing. "Yeah... I suck at Katon so only a tiny little flame'll come out anyway..." She grumbled, moving forward and squatting down next to Sae and going through the packages. She shook her head when most of them were explosives, probably ones that wouldn't last long enough to light the sparklers.

"Okay, okay, gimma a second." Kushina took back the sparkler stick she had handed to Sae, making a couple of sloppy hand signs and spitting, almost literally, out a small flame at the end of the stick. It was enough to get the sparkler going, so Sae beamed and put her own next to Kushina's, hers soon going off as well.

"Nice Katon... We should probably work on that later." Daylian rolled his eyes, about to turn around and escape like the landlord. But Retsuya laughed and placed a hand on both their shoulders, straining a bit to reach Daylian's due to his height.

"Oh you two... Loosen up a bit. It's the end of a long, hard year. Enjoy it a little! It'll be the first time we all celebrated together like this..." The elderly lady's smile grew when her husband turned around, grumbling a bit. Daylian sighed and mimicked, excluding the inaudible complaining. "And when Namikaze-kun comes back, we can all do this again next year, yes?"

"..." Kushina felt her face turning red and quickly turned around, using her free hand to pull her scarf over her cheeks like Daylian. When she felt her cheeks beginning to cool down again, she shot Sae a small glare, in which the blond only responded by grinning and giving a 'peace' sign.

"Come on, come on! Let's finish up the sparklers and get on with the big stuff!!" Sae continued to grin, though she swung her sparkler around rather dangerously, making the group take several steps backwards.

"Don't do that, Sae-chan.. It can be dangerous..." Retsuya chuckled warily, accepting when Kushina offered her sparkler's fire to set off the other sticks. "And we shouldn't waste all of them at once... Let's try each of them first and then decide what to do from there."

"Mm! Good idea!" Sae nodded as she paused her swinging, blinking and staring down in disappointment when the light on her sparkler stick went out. "Oh..."

"It's 'cuz you were swinging it around, datte'sa." Kushina pointed out, hers still going on. Contradicting what she had said, the light went out a second later, making her frown behind her scarf. Daylian stifled a snicker, only holding his sparkler still as he stood beside the landlord.

"Nyehh..." Kushina tugged her scarf back down to her neck and stuck her tongue out. She moved to peer over Sae's shoulder when the blond gasp, curiosity aroused.

"Ohh, I remember these!" Sae smiled and held up a small package of what seemed to be strings. "It's where you have to hold _really_ still!"

"What's the fun in that?" Kushina deadpanned a bit. Sae smiled and opened them up. "It can be pretty hard."

"..." The redhead shrugged and took a couple of the strings that Sae handed up to her, turning to pass them down. The two sole men shook their heads, their sparklers still lit, apparently. Kushina shrugged and handed one to Retsuya, who pointed her sparkler away to make sure the kunoichi didn't get injured.

Again, Kushina did the sloppy Katon and spat out a small flame on Sae's one, who lowered down and stared down as the small flame worked its way upward. Sae frowned crookedly in awkward concentration, who only got stared at by the rest of the group.

A little past half-way up the firecracker, the flame stopped and vanished. Sae's mouth dropped open in disappointment. "Aww! I _never_ got past that point..."

"Lemme try." Kushina herself wanted to see if she could at least get past that point, lowering down and lighting the thin string. The group watched as the small spark flickered its way up, well past Sae's point, before dropping and dying out. Sae frowned before she clenched her fist.

"A challenge!"

"Wha?" Kushina deadpanned at her friend, but only got a few strands shoved into her hands.

Retsuya watched in amusement as the two "challenged" each other, Kushina coming out the victor each time, only for Sae to be more determined. The elderly woman clearly noticed that Kushina intentionally "sneezed", causing her spark to go out early.

"Oh... Lookit that."

"Hah! Got ya, finally!"

Daylian deadpanned at how blind Sae was. He glanced over at the landlord, but got no returning look, so he returned his gaze back to the three women.

"Shall we move onto these ones?" Retsuya suggested as she handed Kushina a couple of circular ones. The kunoichi stared down blankly at the jagged kanji, trying to make due of what the hell it said.

"Mmm..." Sae was reading over her shoulder and understood, before she grinned and plucked them from Kushina's hands to place them on the ground. "These ones are kinda big, so you're gonna have to move away fast when you light them, okay?"

"Right..." Kushina mumbled. Sae nodded and pulled out the small string where the fire was to be ignited, positioning them so that they were easier for her friend, and then moving back to join the others a few distance away. The redhead glanced over her shoulder warily but then quickly lit the flames, moving up and jogging back to the others to watch.

Her eyes watched the flickering sparks as they traveling up from the string and to the main firework, blinking in surprise when nothing happened. She turned her head and opened her mouth to question this, but jumped about a foot in the air when there were a couple of large bangs. Daylian was laughing at her, his face illuminated by the bright sparks the firecrackers were giving off.

Retsuya's eyes were closed, as if she weren't able to handle the bright flares. Sae was watching with her eyes wide and a smile on her face, as if she practiced looking up at the sun just so she could enjoy the flares. Eventually the two lights died out, leaving the ground slightly burned and deprived of snow.

"Haha, those ones really scared you at first, didn't they, Kushina-chan?" Sae giggled a bit as she skipped out, scrambling backwards when there was a final bang from the firecrackers. It was Kushina's turn to snicker.

"Yeah... But _you_ nearly jumped out of your boots from that last one." She continued to snicker before stepping forward with Retsuya.

Sae grumbled but then shakily followed the two in proceeding to continue light the fireworks.

Daylian only continued to stare rather blankly at the three girls, squinting at the bright flares and occasionally jumping when the bangs were loud. He glanced over at the landlord and occasionally exchanged a couple of words in their "conversation" that occurred every few minutes.

His attention was drawn to a rooftop in the distance, where a large amount of fireworks rocketed upwards and exploded several hundred yards above the village. Several more of the larger fireworks shot upwards and burst into a shower of different colors, illuminating the darkened village.

_Midnight already?_ He stifled a yawn and shook his head. "Hey, 'Shina... I'm going back inside. It's late." He muttered. Without waiting for a response, Daylian turned around and moved towards the stairs. By then the landlord already retreated inside his own home.

Daylian paused half way up the stairs to glance down at the women, their heads tilted back and eyes in awe at the colorful display that was held way above their heads. He yawned a bit and rubbed the back of his neck.

_Yeah, yeah, Happy New Year. If blondy's not back by spring I'll kick his ass._

* * *

He panted heavily as he ran in a headlong run down the street, sweat dripping down his temples and past his neck. He scowled at the cursed, thick air of Konoha's summer, but continued running down the street. He spun around the commoners and even leapt over a couple of children. When there was a clearing of the villagers, the ninja lurched forward into a shunshin. His heart hammered against his chest, demanding, _screaming_ that he stopped so that his lungs could gasp air. For a second his vision got blurry, but he gritted his teeth and held on.

_I saw him!!_ Daylian reminded himself over and over when he felt like stopping to breathe. _I saw that bastard!_

The black-haired ninja swallowed for a second and nearly choked as he did, but growled and shot forward in a final shunshin.

"Bastard, wait!"

There was a set of Anbu that had landed on a rooftop, looking back right after Daylian snarled out to them. An Anbu bringing up the rear tensed a bit visibly but remained where he was, getting seized by the strap on his shoulder. There was a ripple effect of tension, but the leader remained calm.

"... I humbly request that you unhand one of my subordinates."

"I just need to talk to him real fast..." Daylian hissed through his teeth, glaring at the masked ninja he had a grip on.

"... I'll catch up in a bit, guys." The caught Anbu murmured as he raised his right hand calmly to the others. "Sorry, senpai."

"... Very well." The leader nodded and then turned, vanishing before his back was completely turned to Daylian. The others followed suit, while Daylian turned his head to spit. He glared darkly at the mask, unable to see his eyes due to the stark shadow the sunlight was casting on the eyeholes.

Without warning, Daylian yanked the Anbu by the strap on his shoulder and dragged him down from the roof and into a shaded alley.

"Daylian-sa-" He didn't get the finish, getting slammed roughly against the stone building and wincing slightly. Daylian was scowling darkly, growls emitting from his throat every time he exhaled.

"You fucking little bastard." The former Uzu-nin hissed as he breathed out. "Tell me, do you know what season it is?"

"... Mid-summer, Daylian-san."

"In the middle of the freaking summer. And when did you leave to join Anbu?"

"... Early winter last year...?"

"So how many seasons has it been?"

"At least two."

"That's right." Daylian still gripped Minato's clothing, his knuckles pressing against the blonds' shoulder. He was still sweating, honestly, even though he dressed really lightly in a tank top and thin jeans. "Two freaking seasons, Minato. That's how many months?"

"... About six..."

"_Half a fucking year_!" Daylian snarled, violet eyes narrowing dangerously. "Do you know what you put Kushina through by being gone for so long?! Huh!?"

"..."

"Good choice..." Daylian spat darkly. "Because my blood is boiling from this stupid heat, and my patience ran out mid-January... I'd probably maul you in the damn face no matter what you say."

"..." Minato finally responded by raising his hand to take the dog mask, pulling it from his face and lowering it down with his arm. There was a small, weak smile, forced on his face.

"I hurt her that much, huh..." Minato turned his head, the forced smile still there, so that his cheek was exposed. "Go on. Give it a good beating."

Daylian's shoulders rose and fell in steady rage, pupils dilating before he released hold of Minato's Anbu uniform and swiftly lashed out with the same arm. There was a sick tearing sound, though it was probably only audible to Daylian. The black-haired ninja's eyes were still narrowed and dangerous, teeth gritting and canines sharpening. His right hand twitched, the nails inhumanely sharp and black fur growing around the blackening nails.

Plastic clattered against the floor, the mask bouncing its landing before rolling slightly and coming to a halt after a couple of seconds.

There were three scratches across Minato's cheek now. Blood was steadily oozing out of the corners, before the rest of it slowly overflowed and created several small streams of red down his cheek. The forced smile was gone now, and Minato only kept his head turned. His blue eyes were blank and staring at nothing. Slowly, painfully against the stone wall, the blond slid towards the ground and then sat in the spot with his hand nearby his fallen mask.

"..." Daylian lowered his hand, which returned to normal by this point, though his canines were still sharp and visibly overlapping his human teeth. "So what the fuck are you going to do now?" He questioned, clenching his fist, receiving cracking knuckles to adjust from the wolf bone structure.

Minato didn't respond, only blindly groping for his mask and then taking hold of it. He placed his other hand back on the wall and then pushed himself up to his zori-covered feet.

"..." He didn't bother to wipe the blood from three lines of slit skin, carrying his mask and walking down the alley rather slowly. "Please don't tell Kushina that I'm back..."

"What?!" Daylian barked, pivoting so that he could glare properly at Minato's back. "You're not going to leave again are-"

"Please. Daylian-san." Minato raised his head slightly and then turned it. There were a couple of tears trailing down from his eye, the salt mixing in with the cut and stinging it. An audible sigh, the rise and fall of shoulders, then he vanished.

* * *

Kushina flopped onto the bed with a sigh, bouncing on the surface once before coming to rest. She closed her eyes and sprawled out, trying to cool down against the warm summer air. The window beside the bed was open slightly to let some fresher air in. Her red hair was short again, cut at the shoulders so that she could tolerate the heat just a little bit better.

Currently, the aforementioned hair was damp from the cold shower she just took, slowly wetting the pillow that her head rested on.

Daylian was on the floor in wolf form, his fur shedding his winter coat so he could adapt to the summer weather. He lay on his flank at the foot of the bed and out of Kushina's way if she were to get off. He hadn't spoken a word to the kunoichi all day, just grunting or nodding in response to whenever she conversed with him. Violet eyes were glaring daggers at the opposite end of the room, and his lip curled up slightly to show how irritated he was with a certain blond.

He kept sheathing and unsheathing his claws against the wooden floor, even as night fell and draped the apartment a dark color. He tensed for a second when Kushina shifted on the bed, rolling off the furniture and trailing around the room.

Kushina stretched a bit and dumped the thin book she was reading onto the table, obviously not too interested in the genre of it. She yawned a bit and stretched her arm again, moving towards the door.

"I'mma step outside for a bit... Too stuffy and I don't want to open the window more." She muttered without looking back. Daylian raised his head from his paws, ears cocking forward slightly before he lowered his head again.

"Alright..." He muttered, watching as the door swung shut behind her.

The kunoichi yawned a bit and then trailed to the railings of the floor, leaning against it and finding the metal cold. She tilted her head backwards and gazed up at the pale sky, barely illuminated by the waning half moon and the stars.

Well, at least it was a little more cooler out here.

She shrugged a bit and stayed outside for a few minutes. Feeling at least satisfied from the cooler air, she straightened.

Then she stiffened when an arm snaked around her stomach from behind. Caught completely off guard, she could only remain frozen as another arm coiled around her shoulders as well, the person's hand clutching her left shoulder tightly and pulling her against the newcomer's body.

Minato dipped his head so that it rested against the side of Kushina's head, arms around her and inhaling deeply to take in her scent.

"Kushina..." The blond murmured softly as he nuzzled his head a little closer. "Kushina, Kushina, Kushina..." He murmured over and over again, as if he liked the sound it make in his slightly deeper voice.

"Mi.. nato...?" Kushina managed to stammer out after her brain finally managed to process all of this suddenly. Her eyes were wide and her breath was caught in her throat, slowly strangling her until she finally inhaled sharply in a sob.

Instantly, Minato's arms around her waist and shoulders tightened, and he pressed his face carefully against the curve of her neck. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I'm sorry..." He shivered against her body despite the warm air, struggling to keep himself from crying. Kushina placed her own arm over Minato's and leaned her head back so that it rested against his shoulder, leaving her neck exposed by his face.

Minato lifted his head at this, eyes half closed in a futile attempt to keep the tears from overflowing. He turned slightly and lightly kissed the corner of her mouth. He slowly uncurled his arms from around her, only to gently turn her around and cup her face with both hands.

Kushina sniffled a bit at this and stared back deeply into his blue eyes, before she bit her lip and moved forward to embrace him tightly. The blond released her face only to wrap his arms tightly around her shoulders, tilting his head to rest it on top of hers.

"I'm sorry..." Minato whispered once more, raising one arm to gently stroke her cut hair. Kushina only buried her face deeper into his shoulder, fisting the back of the Anbu uniform he was still wearing.

"I missed you..."

"I missed you too." Minato huskily replied, pulling back slightly to look down at her again. Using the hand that was stroking her hair, he tilted her head back and leaned down to press his lips against hers, tasting some of the tears that had rolled down that far.

Kushina sobbed softly into the kiss but tiptoed a bit to deepen in, shuddering in his arms before she slowly, hesitantly, pulled back. She soon rested her head against him again.

"Are you going again...?" The red-haired kunoichi whimpered, her fist tightening around his thin uniform. She felt him shift against the side of her head.

"No. I'm staying by your side..." He replied softly leaned back slightly with his arms still around her, a small smile crossing his features. Kushina looked up at him and nearly burst back into tears at the sight of the smile, tiptoeing to peck that smile quickly.

Minato continued to smile at this and tilted his head forward to gently press his forehead against hers, eyes close and gazing at each other wordlessly for at least half the night.

* * *

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **Half of the stuff in the fireworks scene was pretty much made up... D I've only seen a few types of fireworks, plus the ones in mangas... So really, I don't have too much knowledge of fireworks. Sadness.

Haha... Anyway, random fun fact time. That last scene was inspired by this movie that my Japanese teacher showed us.. called Shinobi (:Heart Under Blade). D Personally, there are a couple of parts that make me kinda sick, but other than that it's a pretty cool movie... Gennosuke's cool.. But I never got to finish watching the movie..  
And since I'm actually really squeamish about blood and stuff, I'm scared about what'll show up... 'Cuz I watched part of the end once when I sneaked into the classroom.. and erk.. one of the characters stabbed her own eyes. I passed out after seeing that. (No joke.. Blacked out and collapsed for half a minute, then got up and left the classroom.. xD; )

Yeahhh... I have an incredibly weak stomach, so even seeing violent graphic stuff in manga I can be a bit squeamish at... But for like real life movies, I'll either A.) Flip out. B.) Pass out. C.) Walk out of the room. D.) Do number C and then barf. or E.) Just barf where I'm standing.  
... xD; Pretty sad isn't it? I want to watch all of Shinobi, but I'm too scared... God I'm such a wuss. xX;  
But enough of my ramblings, I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter because I worked rather hard on this one. C: Hopefully the next chapter should be out soon, if school doesn't swamp me.


	26. Here By Me

**Chapter XXVI: Here By Me**

"My birthday?" Kushina echoed the blonds' question, her head turned to look up at him and a brow quirked.

Minato dipped his own head into a couple of nods, looking at her from the corner of his blue eyes and smiling. "Uh-huh... When is it?" He asked again.

"..." Kushina rubbed the back of her neck and continued trailing down the street next to him.

It was still summer time, the villagers choosing the wear thinner clothing in order to stay cool against the infamous summer heat of the Hi no Kuni... Kushina was one of these people, gratefully borrowing a couple of sleeveless tops from Sae and some knee-length shorts. If it weren't for the fact that she had a kunai holster on her right thigh, she would have looked like any attractive civilian girl in the village.

Though... The aforementioned kunoichi looked Minato over again. Frankly, he had gone back to wearing the Jounin clothing... The entire thing. Kushina wondered how he could wear _long-sleeved navy _clothes in _summer_ in _Konohagakure._ And to top it off, he wore the vest over it and the hitai-ate across his forehead. What was making Kushina amazed was that he was barely breaking sweat, maybe a couple of drops every now and then, but that was nothing compared to Kushina.

Sighing warily, she wiped her forehead again, growling when the sweat made her red bangs plaster to her forehead a bit. "What month is it again?"

"Close to the end of July, I'm guessing..." Minato's gaze rolled upwards as if to calculate the time gap between the day he retired from Anbu and the present.

"It passed." Kushina shrugged and tried to brush off the conversation.

"Huh?!" Minato blinked in surprise at this. "Wait, passed?! When?!"

"Uhm... 10th of this month... I think..."

"You think?" Minato sweat dropped a bit, before he laughed warily. "You don't even try to remember your own birthday...?"

"Well I haven't celebrated it for a few years, to be honest." Kushina deadpanned and turned around. "And _please_ don't think about planning on having a late surprise party or anything... It's just... no." The kunoichi shook her head and spun around. She increased her pace, wanting to get out of the street and someplace cooler and quieter... Maybe the training ground with the stream? She wouldn't mind working with water at all...

While she was dozing off, the kunoichi only caught small bits of what Minato was saying to her. So when he called her name a couple of times, Kushina stared at him with a blank expression. "Huh?"

"..." Minato tilted his head to the side and paused in the middle of the street, before he laughed a bit. "The heat is getting to you, isn't it?"

Kushina raised a brow and looked him over a third time. She wiped her forehead again and shook her head. "How are you not getting heat stroke from wearing that?" She questioned warily, fanning herself a couple of times.

"Huh?" The blond looked down at his own clothing, as if not realizing how darkly colored they were. He smiled after a while and then shrugged. "Guess I'm just use to it. Though compared to you, I might as well be wearing a black jacket or something." He chuckled again but held out his hand. "Come on... I'll take you to the stream."

Kushina blinked. A grin stretched across her face and she took his hand. "I was about to leave you to go there..."

"How mean." Minato grumbled a bit before he carefully pulled her into a swift shunshin.

"Whoa, hey!!" Kushina nearly fell over from the sudden speed of the flight, and a couple of seconds later Minato halted, causing her to slam rather painfully into his back. That caused Minato to jump forward a couple of steps, rubbing his back and looking down at Kushina. "Ite 'te 'te...."

Kushina was on the ground kneeling, holding her face in both hands and growling a bit from her throat. "Ow..."

"I'm.. I'm sorry!" Minato rubbed his back a couple of more times and then spun around, lowering onto one knee in front of her. "I didn't realize..."

"_Damn._" Kushina only responded as she got to her feet, feeling Minato supporting her by the elbows. She rubbed her nose a bit, pulling her hand away and looking at it to see if there was any blood. There wasn't any, so she sniffed a bit and looked up at him. "Geezus! I knew you were fast, but..."

Minato tilted his head. "Oh... That was too fast...? I'm sorry." He grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand. Kushina raised a brow slightly, but shook her head.

"I'm fine... Just give me a heads up next time or something, datte'sa..."

The blond Jounin continues to smile down at her, before he nods and takes her hand carefully. This time he instantly takes her to the training grounds using a Hiraishin. He pulls his free hand away from the tree that has one of his seals engraved in it, looking down at the kunoichi.

Kushina instantly vanished from his side, the blond forgotten for the time being as she gave a headlong sprint towards the stream. She jumped into the air a few yards away from the edge of the water, landing with a large slash into the stream.

Minato stared at the rippling surface blankly, and then laughed as he walked casually towards the water. Even as he took off his zori and rolled up the legs on his pants, the kunoichi still hadn't resurfaced. Minato sat at the edge of the water with his feet in it, turning his head left to right to see if he could even catch a glimpse of red beneath the water's surface.

His blue eyes spotted nothing, so he stretched a bit and fell onto his back with his feet still in the water. Minato tucked an arm under his head as a makeshift pillow and stared up at the sky, thinking of a way to give the missing kunoichi a belated birthday gift.

Eventually he nodded off, feeling drowsy from just laying in the sun.

Minato opened his eyes and blinked slowly several times. When he realized he had fallen asleep, he sat up and looked down at his shadow, guessing that he was asleep only for thirty minutes or so. The blond Jounin glanced around and spotted the kunoichi on top of the stream's surface further down. He ruffled his hair, mostly to get the grass blades from the natural spikes.

Minato shook his head and leaned forward to splash some water onto his face to wake himself up completely, before he pulled his feet out of the water and put his sandals back on. He shook his head again to completely rattle out the drowsiness, and then took a step forward.

Before his foot even touched the ground, he vanished in a shunshin, appearing further down the stream closer to where the kunoichi was.

Kushina looked up when she sensed his chakra, turning around and grinning at him. "Finally awake, sleepy head, datte'sa?"

"I fell asleep because you vanished..." Minato mumbled but smiled sheepishly at her grin, rubbing the back of his neck. "Where did you go off to anyway?"

"Just upstream." Kushina motioned towards where Minato came from. "When I came back you were sleeping, so I was practicing..."

Minato tilted his head forward, curiosity arising. He always wondered if the redhead had learned anything while he was away...

"The chakra nature." Kushina replied as if reading his thoughts. She continued to grin and hopped off the water onto the land. "Watch!" She vanished in a shunshin and returned a couple of seconds later with some leaves and a couple of pebbles, tossing them into the stream. Minato only watched as Kushina lowered onto her knees and placed her hands flat on the surface, the images of the rocks and leaves rippling. The rocks instantly sunk to the bottom, though the leaves were slowly swirling downstream.

"..." He tore his gaze away from the escaping leaves down to the kunoichi, and then returned his gaze back. The leaves stopped suddenly as if being trapped by an invisible barrier. Eventually it started to crumple and then it tore to tiny shreds, drifting away in the current.

Minato's brows rose at this and he instantly moved his blue gaze down to the pebbles, just managing to get a glimpse of them shattering in the water.

"..." Kushina's look of concentration broke into a grin as she saw the result of her arduous training, looking up at the blond.

"You managed to get to this point?" Minato questioned in surprise as he returned her look. Kushina nodded her head quickly a couple of times.

"Uh-huh... Though I had to keep pestering your teacher to give me some pointers... Da-nii couldn't help me out much since he doesn't use nature chakra..." Kushina explained. Minato's head tilted again.

"Sensei? He taught you?"

"... Not really." Kushina frowned as she recalled the past. "I barely saw him and whenever I found him, he'd be leaving a brothel or a bar... So then I'd have to take him to his apartment and wait for him to cure from his hang overs..."

".. Haha... That... sounds like sensei alright." Minato laughed warily. "So you basically taught yourself..."

"Pretty much..." Kushina frowned and sat on the bank, folding her arms as if pouting slightly. "But it was worth it... I didn't have much to do anyways... It's pressure, right?" She looked up at him. "Wind slices... fire burns... Lightning electrocutes... Water _is_ pressure, right?"

Minato chuckled a bit. "Hai... Sorry to say, but water is the weakest when it comes to offensive... Defense is its forte."

"..." Kushina sighed a bit and hung her head. "Yeah... I kinda figured as much... But you mastered how to draw out your chakra nature, right?"

"..." Minato smiled then lowered onto the edge of the stream beside her. He placed his hands on the water's surface and focused for a few seconds. The water splashed a bit before it split down the middle, revealing the soaked stream bed. Kushina's eyes widened and her mouth dropped. Minato grinned and then drew his hands away. The water splashed together and sent showers into the air, the stream taking several seconds to return to its natural current.

"... And wind is the strongest offensive nature." Minato sheepishly grinned, feeling as though he was bragging a bit. Kushina closed her mouth then looked at him.

"So... Is it possible to combine them? ... To make a Hyoton?"

Minato paused for several seconds. ".. We can try." He grinned. "It'll be hard, but it'll be a good surprise to give them."

Kushina's smile disappeared. It reappeared again after several seconds. "... Right! We can just use it as like a last resort... and protect everyone else."

"..." Minato's own grin vanished as well, blue eyes staring at her. He frowned a bit and glanced down at his hand for a second, sighing inwardly.

Joining Anbu definitely changed him a tad... The original reason he fought was to grow stronger to protect. In Anbu, you just had to obey orders, kill whoever gets in the way of the mission, and protect high-ranked people such as the Hokage and Elders... That was just about it. While masks were worn, they had no identity, no emotions...

"... Minato?"

"...!" The blond jolted out of his daze, turning his head to look at the kunoichi. "...?"

"Are you alright?"

"... Haha... Yes, I am... I was just thinking for a little bit."

"About what?"

"... How much I've missed being a regular Jounin." He got to his feet and felt the blood rush back down to his calves. Ignoring this, he held out his hand, which the kunoichi instantly took.

"And how much I've missed fighting to protect you." As Minato pulled her up to her feet, he pulled her right into his arms. He held her tightly as if scared of losing himself to some of the Anbu's ways. Kushina leaned against him, staying still for several seconds and then squirming to look up at him.

Sensing her moving, Minato looked down at her in response, finding himself looking at a grinning redhead.

"I knew you'd come to your senses... Being in Anbu almost made you forget, didn't it? We fight to protect ourselves, our friends, our family, our home... and each other." She tiptoed to peck him lightly on the cheek, and then pulled her way out of his arms.

"Now come on... We have to make some new jutsus, right? There's no telling when Iwa's going to attack, datte'yo...!"

_

* * *

_

Minato's eyes were wide and clearly being impressed. He held the weapon delicately between three of his fingers, then flicked his wrist so that he flipped it up into the air. It spun several times in the air to the point where it appeared to be a dark-grey, circular blur, spinning downwards. The blond caught it perfectly by the handle and stared at the double-pronged kunai that balanced well in his hand.

"Wow..." Minato murmured in awe as he flipped it up into the air again, catching it by the ring this time. "This is amazing..."

There was a heavy hand on his shoulder, slowly squeezing into a death grip. "Glad you're accepting your _late Christmas gift_." Daylian smirked darkly as he slowly tightened his grip on the blonds' shoulder.

"Ahaa...ha..." Minato laughed warily while trying his best not to squirm away from the black-haired ninja. "Thank you very, _very_ much, Daylian... -tono..."

"..." Daylian's brows rose at this, as if liking the sound of the honorific. He smirked a bit and released Minato's shoulder, folding his arms. "You're welcome."

"Ite 'te 'te..." The blond Jounin laughed a bit nervously and moved away from Daylian, then turned around and rubbed the shoulder that was clutched tightly.

He looked back over at the black-haired Uzu-nin and blinked a bit when he found that he was at eye-level with him. Though he kept this small discovery to himself, not wanting to agitate Daylian after managing to calm him down. Minato inwardly chuckled, wondering if Daylian would notice the height similarities.

"But really," Daylian muttered, snapping Minato out of his thoughts. "It's good, right? Yuichi's been botherin' me about it ever since..."

"Yeah... It's perfect." Minato smiled widely and flipped the kunai again, catching it by the ring and spinning it from there. "The balance is distributed beautifully... Who made this again? Yuichi...?"

"Watanabe Yuichi."

"That's a new name..." The blond murmured. "I thought this would be Shimizu-san's... but then again, it doesn't feel quiet like his style..." He flipped it once more as if to test its feel again.

"He just got here. Like a year ago or something." Daylian muttered. "His smithing village was gonna be targeted, so 'Shina and I pointed them in Konoha's direction."

"Ah..." Minato smiled and admired the new weapon again. "Would you mind giving me the directions to his shop? I'd like to commission a few more of these."

* * *

Rain fell in large portions, completely drenching the earth. Mist hovered above the puddles that formed on the ground, endless ripples being created from the downpour.

Amidst the gloomy night, the fire was barely visible through the thick wall of rain. The small light was dull and barely surviving against the rain, the only form of protection it received was a few branches that hung overhead.

A couple of ninja sat close to the fire, keeping their eyes on it to make sure it didn't go out while they were on watch.

Minato sat a few inches away from the fire, occasionally moving to throw in some leaves that he had managed to keep damp, if not soaked. He slouched miserably, one knee brought up to his chest to try and retain warmth. His hair was completely drenched, bangs sticking to his temples and cheeks while his blue eyes only stared dully at the dying flame. Minato's clothes were also clinging to his skin, drenching him further and going right down to chill his bones.

More than anything did he want to beat down some Iwa ninja. It was their fault he was out here, nearly freezing to death in the middle of the rainy season in the Hi no Kuni. It was their fault that he would inevitably get sick after this mission. And it was _their_ fault for stooping so low as to take the Daimyo's daughter hostage.

Of course Minato just _had_ to be the one selected personally by the Hokage to carry out the secret mission.

And just when he was close to getting somewhere with Kushina on the Hyoton... After nearly a year too. Minato's shoulders dropped and he threw a few more leaves into the fire. It took _months_ for them just to be able to draw out their chakra natures with only one hand, and finding a way to even mix the two took out another few months.

Minato growled a bit and ruffled his own hair roughly to keep the blood flowing. The Hyuuga sitting across from him looked up, before looking back down and keeping his arm wrapped around the sword resting on his shoulder.

"Doesn't look like it'll be clearing any time soon, doesn't it?" The Hyuuga's brass voice murmured, just barely audible over the downpour. Minato's mouth twitched a bit as he fought to keep his irritation inward.

"Yeah... How far are we from...-"

"Several kilometers. We'll reach it by tomorrow noon."

"..." Minato dipped his head into a single nod, and then proceeded to rubbing his arms when he felt them going numb.

"... Here, eat this." The Hyuuga murmured after digging through his drenched robe, tossing something to the blond. "It'll warm you up."

Minato leaned forward and caught it before it could fall into the fire. He glimpsed down at the small pill and then popped it into his mouth before it could be ruined by the rain. The blond gagged a second later and sputtered a bit.

"Wh.. What the hell?!"

The Hyuuga laughed. "Hahaha!! Warmed you up, didn't it?"

Minato held his tongue out a bit, letting it cool against the chilling, wet air. "Wha' tha hehk was tat?" He questioned warily as he kept his tongue out, feeling a tear come to his eye at how spicy the pill was.

"Ahaha. A compressed little pill of wasabi, my friend." The Hyuuga smiled and then ate one himself. He covered his mouth with one hand, lowering his head for a second. The man recovered a second later, grinning as he pulled his hand away from his grinning mouth.

"... Did you invent it?" Minato withdrew his tongue and deadpanned warily at the man, slouching even further.

"Heh... Back in the old days when there weren't any missions, we'd challenge each other to see who can eat most of these." The Hyuuga continued to grin. "But it works, right? It makes you focus on your mouth than the cold rain."

"..." Minato pouted a bit and swirled his tongue around in his mouth to try and get rid of the bitter wasabi taste. He sighed a bit but warily grinned. "Uh. Guess you're right. I'm feeling a little better."

"That's great to hear, kiddo." The Hyuuga smiled and then threw a few more preserved leaves into the fire. "Watch the fire for a second, will you? I'll tell them that our shift is just about done."

"Ossu." Minato nodded and moved forward to shield the flickering fire from the rain. He still swirled his tongue in his mouth, gagging whenever he felt the spicy taste go down his throat. He coughed a bit and then looked up, hearing barely-audible wet footsteps.

"Find some shelter and get whatever sleep you can." The other teammate for the team murmured as he took the Hyuuga's place in front of the fire. Minato nodded and got to his feet, glancing around the dark area.

Inwardly, he sighed and rolled under a large enough bush. His mouth twitched when he still felt a good amount of rain falling, but he sighed and rolled onto his side. Minato couldn't wait for this mission to be over with- he wanted to be back in the warmth and not wet and miserable in the middle of the night. He huffed a bit to himself and forced his complaints to the back of his mind, focusing on sleep.

_

* * *

_

"Kumo ninja. About six platoons of them. The guards are all dead or unconscious. The Princess is in a room below ground with another platoon of them." The Hyuuga murmured from where he pressed himself against the trunk of a wet tree. Other members of the Konoha group were spaced out, all camouflaging themselves and using the rain to their advantage. In unison their eyes moved in the direction of where the Hyuuga was murmuring, listening to his report.

The youngest one of the specially-selected platoon, Minato naturally, crouched behind a tree with his hair plastering together in a dirtier-blond color, almost like his father's hair but a few tones lighter...

"How shall we do this? Hey, kid, get back here." The ninja gathered together beside the Hyuuga. Minato glanced over his shoulder for a second and then looked back at the large temple before them. He got up and turned around to regroup with the rest of them.

The leader of the assembled platoon, a former high-ranking Anbu captain, shook his head uselessly as if trying to get the droplets out. "... I'm going to need information on all your abilities."

"Except mine." The Hyuuga smiled and waved his hand a bit, his bloodline ceasing and his temples growing smooth again from the lack of veins.

"... Except his." The leader agreed, his gaze rolling over the other adult and then landing on the younger blond. "You first."

".. Hai." Minato dipped his head into a curt, respectful nod. "Speed is my strongest point. I'm also familiar with several other types of ninjutsu. Genjutsu is my weakest point... I've been in Anbu for about half a year but I quit just recently."

"Hnnn." The Hyuuga smiled, impressed. "How old are you? Sixteen?"

"Seventeen."

"Haha, wooow. Just like ol' Rosu over here." The Hyuuga glanced at the leader. "Watch out, taichou. I'd say this kiddo's on par with you."

"Gosuke-san, please..." Minato lowered his gaze to avoid Rosu's. The former Anbu captain only ignored the Hyuuga and looked over at the last member.

"Genjutsu." The female murmured as she raised her hand to move the clinging bangs away from her sharp red eyes. "Followed by weaponry and then taijutsu."

"Of course." Gosuke continued to smile, before it gradually transformed into a smirk. "I've heard about you, Michiharu-san. Your methods are rather... grotesque. So I've heard."

"You've heard correctly then, I suppose." Michiharu's sharp eyes looked down at her painted nails, before she licked her lips. "Of course no one's really lived to tell about my... _favorite_ technique."

"And I don't want to know." Gosuke shook his head and then looked to Rosu. "So how shall we do this, taichou?"

The former Anbu captain folded his arms and only gave them a blank expression as he thought to himself, calculating and using Gosuke's information on the number of Kumo ninja in order to form a type of strategy. "... Michiharu."

"Aah." The kunoichi looked up with her own arms folded, a brow rising through the wet black hair that plastered to her forehead.

"... You take care of the main group. Your genjutsu should be strong enough for at least 30 ninja, if Hokage-sama recommended you." Rosu muttered as he kept his blank gaze. "Gosuke."

"Hai?"

"You lead after Michiharu starts. Take care of any traps, and attack the ones guarding the princess."

"Ossu." Gosuke saluted slightly, and then irritably picked at the drenched long sleeves of his robe. "No problem."

"Namikaze."

"Hai." Minato straightened himself, finding himself at least the same height as Michiharu when he did this. The thought was forgotten as Rosu started explaining.

"We'll take out the rest if Gosuke didn't handle them. One of us will be securing the Princess' safety."

"... I'll take that job, if you don't mind." Minato murmured after a pause.

Instantly all their gazes fell on the youngest of the platoon. Michiharu's distinct cat-like eyes stared at him with the most cynical look of the three. Gosuke only blinked, and Rosu had his usual expressionless mask.

"... Explain."

"I can't show you now." Minato murmured. He reached into his soaked weapon pouch and took one of his Hiraishin seals, quickly slapping it onto a nearby tree and moving the low branch to cover the seal up. "They would sense the chakra. But I can get the princess out of there and to this very spot... in an instant."

Gosuke was grinning widely at this. Michiharu rolled her eyes and commented something like _"At least I can have fun."_ under her breath, and Rosu tilted his head forward in interest. "... Guaranteed?"

"Absolutely." Minato fixed the branch again and then looked back at his assembled teammates. "I promise."

"..."

"We're relying on you, kiddo." Gosuke grinned and then activated his bloodline. "Sa. Go on, Michiharu-san."

"With pleasure." Michiharu turned and moved forward, strutting casually through the foliage and onto the muddy path that lead up to the temple. Her figure faded slowly into the pouring rain, his silhouette visible barely as she walked up the large stone steps.

"... Hnn... It might clear up. The rain." Gosuke smiled as he stared forward blankly, his bloodline allowing him to see what was currently happening in the inside of the temple as well as everything within several kilometers. Minato looked over at the Hyuuga and blinked some of the water from his eyes. Gosuke chuckled a bit and then turned around, walking towards the temple just as blood-curdling screams were audible over the downpour.

"It's time." Gosuke muttered as he shot forward. Rosu instantly followed in a blur, vanishing in the rain. Minato glanced over at the tree he placed his Hiraishin seal on, and then blurred into a swift shunshin to catch up with the rest of them.

The blond dashed through the large, opened doors of the temple. He grimaced at the sight. Michiharu was simply standing there with a smirk, watching as the large rooms filled with ninja were clawing at themselves, screaming in agony. Minato turned his blue gaze away and shunshin'd after Rosu and Gosuke.

Gosuke slammed his shoulder against the second large set of doors and darted into the room. The unmistakable sound of a sheet of metal sliding smoothly out of its sheath echoed softly in the quiet room as the heavy doors swung shut. A second later there was some sparks in the dark room to add onto the clash of metal. Gosuke and Rosu's chakra shot forward, leading Minato through the dark as his eyes adjusted.

"Shuriken coming down from above, kiddo." Gosuke's voice warned. Minato burst forward quickly and heard the thud of the star-shaped weapons embedding the wooden floor behind him.

"Let's rush 'em, taichou." Gosuke commented before light poured into the room as the Hyuuga slammed against another door. Gosuke charged forward and instantly impaled one of the ninja with his katana, his left hand moving from the sword hilt to strike perfectly at another's tenketsu. Rosu vanished from in front of Minato, a few ninja falling.

"The princess." Rosu's voice hissed as Minato shot past the fight. The blond only nodded curtly, blue eyes focusing on the hostage while Gosuke and Rosu covered him. He glanced over his shoulder with his pupils widening, feeling a large concentration of chakra filling the room.

"Kid!!" Gosuke yelled as one of the Kumo ninja aimed a Raiton at the princess. Minato's pupils narrowed rather dangerously and he shot forward, diving for the princess and grabbing her arm. His other hand made a seal and he landed with a grunt on muddy ground, feeling the princess on the ground next to him.

Minato scowled and rubbed his arm where the lightning-based attack managed to knick him, brushing off the pain and getting to his feel, pulling the Daimyo's daughter up to her wire-bound feet. The woman writhed wildly as if trying to get away, cloth tied around her mouth and gagging her.

"Calm down, ohime-sama." Minato murmured as he freed her arms from the wire. He looked down at her torn-kimono and removed the wires that were binding her legs together. The blond looked down at her and then slipped the gag from her mouth. "We're Konoha ninja."

_

* * *

_

"That wasn't so hard..." Gosuke commented as they walked along the muddy path of the thick forest. "I thought it would be a lot harder, but..." The Hyuuga turned his head to glance over at the sole kunoichi of the special team. Michiharu's sharp gaze looked back at him before a smirk crossed her features. Rosu glanced at the two before looking back forward; carrying the bag of gifts they had received from the Hi no Kuni's Daimyo himself. Minato was walking a few paces ahead of the group.

"Buuut I guess it went well. No casualties on our side." Gosuke shrugged and looked up at the sky, where the dark clouds were slowly beginning to thin after the long rainstorm over the last couple of days. Gray eyes looked forward at the youngest member. "Hey, kiddo? You wanna head back to the village quickly, right?"

"... Hai." Minato responded after turning his head to look over his shoulder. He warily grinned and then shook his head a few times, feeling his hair clinging to his face a bit.

"..." Rosu only stared at the blond and then over to the Hyuuga. Gosuke returned the glance.

"... Ah, okay kiddo. You can go on ahead and make the report." Gosuke stretched a bit and looked back up at the sky as the rain slowed into a drizzle. "Make the job easier for us when we get back."

Minato blinked and spun around to look at Gosuke and then looked at Rosu for approval. The blank-faced ninja stared back before Rosu dipped his head into a single, curt nod. A grin stretched across Minato's face before he spun around again, bending his knees and moving his arms back behind him.

"Arigatou!" He called before he shot forward, vanishing in a blur. Michiharu raised a brow when he vanished completely from the path, no longer sensing his chakra anywhere near the area.

"... What's that all about?" Michiharu questioned as she ran her fingers through her hair, shaking some of the water out.

"Can't you tell? Kiddo has a girl waiting for him back at home." Gosuke chuckled, stretched for several seconds, and exhaled a relieved sigh as the sun finally managed to break through the thick cloud barrier.

_

* * *

_

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **I hate school work right now. u.u' Sorry guys, I'll try not to make this fic a monthly update.. Dx But I also want to get a 4.0 so I can get a new laptop from my mum. -sigh-

On a side translation, the honorific tono is like.. Uh... What was it again? Uh. Lord or master... or something along those lines. xD Haha.  
Just in case it was hard to tell, there was another time-skip. x.x' The part where 'Nato's on the mission? Yeah... I need to pick up the pace of the fic a little... considering that Minato doesn't start teaching until he's at least eighteen... and he was only... what, sixteen? x.x So... Now I'm going to say that it's June in their universe, Minato being seventeen, and Kushina about to turn that age in the next month.

Sorry for the confusion. x.x There might be a few more small skip forwards in the future, until I can settle down onto a certain age. This seems inevitably when Minato teaches Kakashi guys.


	27. Brand New Map

**Chapter XXVII: Brand New Map**

A Jounin shot through the village at full speed, fanning away from the rest of his teammates to gather up the reinforcements needed for the ensuing battle. There was blood trailing down from the side of his head, though he quickly wiped away the red lines and pressed forward. He panted heavily and squeezed an eye shut when he felt himself close to passing out from the lost of blood, but managed to clear the fence that separated the training grounds from the village. The Jounin coughed and then slowed his pace as he saw the one he was looking for, collapsing onto his knees and drawing in a deep breath.

"Namikaze-san!! You're needed in the front lines!!"

"..!" Minato had long sensed the shinobi from further away, though his eyes narrowed at the urgent message as well as how battle-scarred the other Jounin was. Kushina tore away from Minato's side to approach the injured one quickly, and then lowered down beside him to untie his hitai-ate.

The kunoichi parted his hair and grimaced at the scratch that was visible beneath the hair roots. She twisted her body to grab her weapon pouch, digging through it to grab out a small medical kit.

"I'm fine... But Namikaze-san... Sandaime-sama has requested immediate departure!" The Jounin flinched when Kushina dabbed the blood from the head wound. Minato tilted his head forward, and then sighed, running his fingers through his hair.

"I'm on it." Minato muttered as he spun on his heels. He inwardly sighed and was about to take off, though Kushina's voice stopped him.

"Wait, I'm coming with you!" Kushina barked as she cleaned out the wound. She had the roll of bandages in one hand, pulling the corner of it with her mouth while the other hand kept the hair out of the shinobi's wounds. Quickly she applied the bandage with some pressure so that the bleeding would stop long enough for him to get some real medical attention. The red-haired kunoichi jumped to her feet after patting his shoulder.

"Go to the hospital and tell 'em we're going." Kushina called before joining Minato. The blond hastily took her hand and gently squeezed it.

"We should hurry." Minato murmured as he made single-handed seals. Kushina barely had time to nod, instantly finding herself at the large gates of the village. She blinked before the scene swiftly changed again, and they were deep in the country's thick forest, with neither the village nor the path nowhere to be found.

The forest was rather still and peaceful; a few cicadas were audible in the distance. Kushina tilted her head for a second and took in the calm scenery again. It was rather hard to imagine that a battle was going on somewhere further towards the border of the country. Kushina turned to look at Minato; Firstly because he didn't Hiraishin them closer to the battle and secondly because he squeezed her hand.

"... Be careful." He smiled as he turned his head to gaze down at her with his clear blue eyes. "... Can't have you injured a few days before your birthday..."

"..." Kushina snorted and then warily grinned a bit. She tugged on his hand and then motioned forward with the other arm. "Come on. They're waiting for some help out there."

Minato dipped his head into a single nod, then lurched forward and pulled her into another shunshin. With each long-term shunshin, Kushina could start to feel a slight trembling in the ground, as well as flares of chakra several kilometers ahead. The kunoichi glimpsed at Minato out of the corner of her eyes, and she could see that his expression was blank. She could feel the grip on her hand loosening, and his shunshin distances shortening.

He finally let go of her hand and muttered before he vanished in another shunshin, "Defend the wounded."

The red-haired kunoichi nodded and landed on the ground with a light grunt, darting ahead a few paces to group with the ninja that were taking cover. She lowered onto a knee with the rest of the crouching ninja, grinning a bit and saluting with a couple of fingers.

"Uzumaki Kushina at your service, 'tebayo!"

Several of the Jounins and Chuunins looked at her, a few of them looking disappointed to see only one ninja as reinforcement. There were a couple of other Jounin standing up, combining Doton jutsus to create a safe wall while the injured could be tended to. Kushina tilted her head forward. She jumped to her feet and then onto the small wall, making some hand seals as she pulled out a scroll.

"You guys take a rest. Replenish your chakra. I'll deal with defense." Opening the scroll on the broad wall, she made a few hand seals. Water gushed from the centre of the scroll, coming to life with the support of her chakra. Several kunais shot at the Suiton wall, startling Kushina for a brief second. Kushina shook her head quickly and focused, eyes assessing the situation. The battle was several yards ahead of them, consisting of several Doton attacks from Iwa's side. Konoha ninja were all over the place, using their own jutsus to make defensive barriers to buy time for counter attacks. The ground shook with every earth-based attack that was released as well as from explosions from paper tags.

Kushina gritted her teeth when several stray Doton attacks came. She shakily performed a few hand seals, and the water came to life once more. It caught the boulders, surrounding it completely before the rocks crumbled into harmless little bits inside the Suiton. Kushina had to stop and grin a bit.

_Didn't think I'd be good enough to use it in battle... _She quickly came back to attention when the ground shook, bringing her back to reality. Kushina adjusted her footing atop the broad-top Doton wall, one hand in a seal to keep the water active, and the other throwing kunais at enemies that came too close. Though in a blur the enemies would be brought down, so her kunais would miss completely. Kushina puffed her cheeks at this.

"I can handle them myself, blondy!!" She yelled over the war cries and rumbling. Kushina huffed a bit, but looked to the east and swiftly clasped her hands together. She quickly directed the water so that it caught the score of shuriken, which dropped helplessly to the ground.

"... You're doing a wonderful job.. Uzumaki, was it?" Another female voice called. Kushina was tempted to look over her shoulder, but nodded several times and continued defending the medics and the injured.

"Kushina's fine too." She responded. Kushina didn't hear anything from the medic after that, so she assumed that they were busy tending to wounds. The red-haired kunoichi's eyes widened when she saw one of Konoha's medics out in the battlefield, hauling a couple of unconscious bodies off the ground.

"Shit!!!" Kushina hissed. She made a couple of hand signs and ended with the tiger seal. Some of the water barrier that hung by her parted from the rest, shooting to the daring medic kunoichi to defend her from incoming attacks. Kushina felt a little faint, having to focus on that lone medic as well as the injured people behind her.

"Thank you!" When the medical kunoichi thanked her and took refuge behind the Doton wall, Kushina recognized her voice instantly.

"What the _hell_ were you doing?!" Kushina snarled without turning around, returning the water back to the rest of the barrier.

"Collecting the injured..."

Kushina scowled and turned her head so that she could look over her shoulder. "Okay listen up!! If you guys are going out there, you have to tell me so I can defend you, alright?! Don't just go running ou-" Several rock shards and kunais slammed against the barrier that was held in front of Kushina. The force of it was enough to fling the kunoichi off the wall and onto her back, winding her for a few seconds. Without Kushina's chakra transmitting into it, the water barrier dropped into a large puddle.

"Che..." Kushina gritted her teeth and cracked her eyes open a bit, before they flew open. Instantly she sat up and made hand signs to make the water active, shooting them upwards to absorb shower of boulders that came from above. Her mouth opened when she barely spotted the exploding tags on the boulders, quickly making the water surround the boulders and forcing her chakra to increase the pressure.

The boulders shattered, but the tags still exploded. Water showered everywhere, raining down on the Konoha ninja and some of the Iwa ninja that had gotten close. Kushina was shielding her head, and then slowly looked up, dripping wet. Her hands dropped down to her sides and she flopped onto her back with a groan.

"Holy crap..."

"..." The medics were still a bit stunned at what happened, having thought they would be dead from the exploding tags. The medical kunoichi broke the shock.

"Th... that was amazing! Are you hurt?!"

"... Just a bit stressed." Kushina sighed and rubbed her temple. She swung her legs and jumped back onto her feet, wringing her hair out a bit. She shook her head and jumped back to her spot on the wall, performing seals to retrieve the water from all around the makeshift refuge camp.

Inhaling and exhaling to calm herself, Kushina gathered the water and made the barrier once more.

_

* * *

_

On the front lines, Minato was busy. He was taking shelter behind a boulder, peering out before withdrawing to avoid the onslaught of kunais that were aimed at him. He saw the small pause and shot out from behind the natural shield, using Shunshins to flicker in and out of sight until he reached the injured Konoha ninja sprawled on the dusty earth. As soon as he grabbed a hold of the Jounin's sleeve, Minato used a Hiraishin to retreat back to where the rest were retaliating.

The blond lowered the injured one onto the ground carefully behind the barricade of up-rooted trees that the Konoha ninja improvised. The injured Konoha Nin opened one eye painfully to look up at him.

"Wha... What'd you do that for? I'm... about... dead any..way."

Minato looked down at him, then smiled and brushed some of his growing bangs out of his eyes. "You aren't dead until you actually are. So long as you're alive, you can be treated so you can continue to live and protect..." The blonds' blue eyes looked up when he was approached by a senior ninja.

"I'll take him to the medics... Just try and focus on the battle if you can..." The Jounin muttered as he carefully lifted the injured off the ground, vanishing in a blur shortly after.

"Hai." Minato approached the wall of stacked up tree trunks, jumping to the top of it with the other ninja. There were a few others out there acting as the retaliation, while the ones on top of the wooden barricade, the ones Minato was with, picked off enemies the best they could to keep their comrades alive.

"We're getting into a pinch here, Namikaze..." Another senior Jounin muttered without taking his gaze off the selected few in the frontlines. "Most of them are trying to get rid of the Iwa ninjas that got past us... And we've already had a bunch of casualties..."

"..." Minato looked over at the Jounin, and then forced a small encouraging smile. He held out one of his weighted kunais, flipping it and catching it neatly by the tip of the blade so that the handle was held out politely to the other Jounin. The blond felt the weapon being taken from his fingertips, taking his weapon pouch off and placing it on the tree surface next to the senior. Wordlessly, Minato made a few hand signs, blue eyes focusing forward.

"I'm ready."

"Right." While Minato was performing the hand seals, the senior Jounin passed the weighted kunais around to the others atop the tree barricade. Minato waited until the kunais were thrown far enough, then vanished from his perch. He grasped the kunai and swung with it, the triple-bladed weapon stabbing into the unsuspecting neck of the Iwa ninja. The blond spun around and kicked the enemy in his mid-drift, before disappearing to the next kunais.

Before he knew it, he Hiraishin'd to a spot where a body was already lying at his feet. He turned his head to look around, finding the enemies out in the field already fallen.

"It... It's the Senkou...!"

"Shit... they're all down."

"What do we do now...?"

Minato ignored the urgent questions coming from Iwa's side of the battlefield, looking down and gathering the kunais that were scattered all around next to the bodies. He encountered a few that had managed to survive, staring down at them. The blond sighed and took the kunai from their side and stood up, walking away as they writhed in agony. He ducked his head to avoid the shuriken one of the more stubborn Iwa ninja's threw at him. Minato had caught one of the star-shaped weapons, tossing it swiftly behind him and hearing a restrained groan coming from the ninja. He glanced over his shoulder to make sure the weapon hit the target, which was the Iwa ninja's hand, then turned around and looked for the rest of his kunais.

He looked up, the weapons clattering together as he held them by the rings. Minato threw the Hiraishin kunais back at his fellows, who in turn caught them to prepare for their next retaliation wave.

The Konoha ninja yelled blood-curdling war cries, which admittedly, even made Minato shiver a bit. He felt them run up from behind him, passing his still form shortly as they charged across the field. The blond took a moment to close his eyes, calming himself and then vanishing when he heard the kunais flying through the air.

_

* * *

_

Kushina felt groggy as her eyes slowly opened. Her eyelids drooped for a second, but the glimpse of an orange light forced her to wake up. She stared dazedly at the flames licking the wood, and noted some food that was being cooked. Blinking some of the sleep from her eyes, Kushina sat up and groaned when her back cracked a bit. She looked over her shoulder and sighed when she discovered that she had been sleeping on the Doton wall, concluding it as the reason her back was so sore. The red-haired kunoichi rubbed her neck and sat up, looking around.

She spotted that one girl medic from previously, sitting across the fire and staring at her. Kushina instantly felt awake at this, feeling uncomfortable at the thought of being stared at while she was sleeping.

"Err..."

"Hi." The medic smiled as she tilted her head. "Feeling energized again? We should be heading back to the village soon, once we're done stabilizing the condition of some others."

"Uh... That's great." Kushina muttered. She looked around and saw that it was nearing dusk, sighing a bit. She moved closer to the fire to warm herself a bit, catching the aroma of the herbs and some kind of bird meat. "What happened at the battle front?"

"We've won." The medic continued to smile. "... They're just collecting some of the bodies..."

"Oh." Kushina was worried for a second, but calmed down when she felt familiar arms around her shoulders. Relief flooded her body when Minato rested his head along the curve of her neck, sitting down behind her. Kushina leaned back against him, putting her hand atop one of his. She almost dozed off at the calming feeling, blinking awake when she smelled the light iron-like tinge of blood. Kushina sat up quickly, startling Minato and making him let go of her.

"Are you hurt...?!"

"..." Minato blinked and looked down at his hands, then raised one to his neck to rub it nervously. "No... But I could have sworn I washed it all off..."

Kushina's shoulders slumped in relief. "Thank god..."

"But you're a little scratched up yourself." Minato took her chin between his index finger and thumb, turning her head slightly to look at some of the scratches.

"I am?"

"... You can fix those up."

Kushina jumped at the kunoichi-medic's voice, completely forgetting that she was still there. The girl, who Kushina guessed was only a couple of years older than herself, was still smiling. "Your chakra nature is water, correct?"

"... Yeahhh..."

"I can tell. Oh, I'm Nagasaki Yase." She introduced quickly. "But beyond that... Water nature is good with defense, but it's also well suited with healing."

Kushina blinked several times and turned her head to look over at Minato. The blond Jounin nodded at this, smiling lightly himself.

"It's true..."

"Uh-huh..."

"All you have to do is add a little bit of water nature to your chakra and put it over a wound." Yase explained. "It helps purify the wound, stops the bleeding, and it can sometimes wash out poison."

"But it can't heal the wound completely..." Kushina murmured cryptically, a brow rose in slight interest.

"Well... You can. But that requires forcing the cells to work... It can.. shorten the patient's life that way. Not by too much if it's just a small scratch, but still..." Yase rubbed her neck nervously, but was still smiling a bit. ".. I'm sorry; I'm probably forcing this on you, aren't I?"

"Nn... No, not really. I think that could be useful." Kushina responded after some thought. Curiously, she looked down at her hand. Curling her fingers, save the index finger, she felt her cheek a bit until she found a scratch. She focused for a bit and flinched after several seconds. "Ow...!"

"Haha, you really tried it?" Yase's never changing smile was still there. "If it stings then that means there was some dirt in that cut. You should be careful- small wounds can even turn into infections if they aren't cleaned out."

Kushina was rubbing her cheek, grumbling a bit. Minato chuckled in amusement. He looked up when Yase's surname was called, making the medic jump to her feet.

"Oh! This should be the last ones... I think you guys are allowed to go back to the village now. The medic's will handle this."

Dipping his head into a nod, Minato got up to his feet. He offered his hand to the kunoichi, pulling her off the ground and immediately into a hug. Kushina blinked for a second, and then wrapped her arms around his waist, knowing that he was still just a little upset about being directly in the frontlines. Minato released her from the embrace, then twined his fingers with hers.

"Should we go back home?"

"Please."

_

* * *

_

Kushina dressed herself in light clothing, a tank top and some shorts, with her gloves and her Konoha hitai-ate sported around her neck. She tied some of her red hair back, which was admittedly getting a little long being just above her shoulder blades. Shaking her head she discarded the thought, turning around and snatching the key, knowing Daylian would sneak in when he came back from where ever he was.

The kunoichi stretched her arms as she walked down the stairs, marveling in the spring sunlight. The winter had been rainy and cloudy, which Minato had explained to her would occur if it was too warm for snow. Even if Kushina _did_ use to live in a wet country, Konoha's snowless winters were a bit too soggy and warm. Now she enjoyed the sun's presence immensely.

And she knew for sure that she would enjoy _dry_ battles, instead of having to camp out in the country with warm, drenching rain practically drowning them when they got a chance to rest. Kushina scowled as she remembered that week. Minato wasn't there so the battle was long-term, forcing them to make camp. Minato was, apparently, only sent out when things got risky for Konoha. Kushina hated that week.

She hated it more because she got sick.

Huffing, the kunoichi continued down the streets of the large village. There was currently another skirmish along the northeastern side of Konoha's borders, where Kumo's country was. Kushina wasn't sent out there, so she was stuck back in the village.

So she decided to do something useful while she had this chance to learn.

Kushina jumped onto a nearby roof and travelled via Shunshin towards the hospital. She arrived after a couple of minute's worth of moving, landing in front of the hospital. Wiping some light sweat off her forehead, she stared up at the large building and then moved forward through the doors.

Past the receptionist desk and down the hall, she could see medics moving across the doors, obviously busy. Her mouth twitching, she approached the desk, in which the young man looked up at her over the rim of his thin glasses.

"... May I help you?"

"Yeahhh... Is... Yase here?"

"Yase..." He repeated in a tone, which demanded that she carried on with the last name.

"Uh. Shoot... Yamasaki?"

"There is no Yamasaki Yase here."

"No, wait... Nakasaki?"

"Mm. No."

"..." Kushina glared down at the receptionist, pouting a bit before sighing. "Something -saki. Help me out here, 'tebayo..."

"Nagasaki Yase." The kunoichi blinked at the mature woman voice, staring down at the receptionist. He looked offended at this, frowning and motioning for Kushina to look behind her. Before she did, he immediately went back down to his paperwork. Kushina looked startled at the sight of the familiar Uchiha kunoichi.

"Ah... Mikoto?" Kushina asked as she blinked several times. Mikoto smiled a bit, and then waved the other kunoichi away from the desk.

"Come on... Let's sit down. It's been a while, hasn't it?" The Uchiha kunoichi had let her hair grow out a bit, Kushina noticed as she followed. She also grew a bit taller, since the top of Kushina's head was up to Mikoto's onyx eyes. The red-haired kunoichi huffed at her height difference, but followed Mikoto and sat down on the chairs in the lobby.

"What're you doing here, Mikoto? You're a medic now?" Kushina asked as she settled down onto the cheap chairs.

"Mmm... Well just temporarily." Mikoto smiled. "Since I can't be out in the battlefield for a while..."

"... Why?" Kushina dared to question. "Did... you get hurt, 'tebayo?"

The older kunoichi chuckled. "Haha... No..." Mikoto placed a hand over her stomach and looked down. Kushina followed her gaze and blinked.

"... Mean stomach ache?"

Mikoto had to laugh out loud for a few seconds, making Kushina jump. This only made Kushina more confused than curious.

"No, no, Kushina-chan... Ohh... You're so innocent. I'm pregnant." Mikoto wiped a tear from the corner of her eye, having laughed that much. She looked up in time to watch Kushina's eyes widen.

"Wha... Wait, pregnant?!" Kushina nearly yelled. "With... with..."

"A baby, Kushina-chan." Mikoto chuckled in amusement.

"No, I mean!" Kushina waved her hands a bit, shaking her head as she tried to make her sentence coherent. "With... _Fugaku_'s child?!" She could feel her face redden, her cheeks growing sore from the pooling blood.

Mikoto nodded. "That's right... I'm about 4 months in now."

Kushina rubbed her neck rapidly in a flustered motion, tilting her head downwards to hide her red face. "Wow... Pregnant, huh?"

Mikoto chuckled and dipped her head into a nod. "Yeah... Pregnant women aren't allowed into the battlefield, since... Well, you know. But I'm so used to the ninja life that I can't just sit around. I get a bit..."

"Fidgety?" Kushina finished without looking up, still rubbing her neck.

"At that rate you'll rub the skin off your neck, Kushina-chan. But yes, I get antsy if I just sit around." Mikoto smiled. She placed her hand on her stomach again. "But I'm excited..."

"... I heard it hurts. And you puke a lot." Kushina grumbled. She lowered her hand after Mikoto's first comment, but still looked down as she rested her arms on her knees, slouching forward. Mikoto chuckled.

"Haha... That's only the first few weeks... And after the pain, it'll be worth it. You'll see."

Kushina, in response, folded her arms over her stomach and pressed her knees together. "Umm... I'm.. still scared... I don't really want to..."

"... You will eventually." Mikoto assured with a smile. She leaned forward a bit to brush some of Kushina's red bangs out of her face. "You're still a virgin, aren't you?"

Kushina jumped to her feet, clearly flustered as she waved her hands a bit. "Ah, erm... Well. Uh. You see..."

Mikoto chuckled and stood up slightly to take one of Kushina's flailing hands, slowly pulling her back down onto the chair. "Ahaha... We're both girls, there's no need to be embarrassed. Awww... Sae-chan should be here... But maybe another time." Mikoto smiled. "We should have a girls' night out. I'm sure Sae will enjoy that."

"Err..." Kushina waved her hands again, but more slowly this time. "I'm... I've never done..."

"That's it then! We definitely should have one! A trip to the onsens, some delicious snacks, and lots of talking late into the night." Mikoto smiled widely at the thought of all the relaxation. She winked at the younger kunoichi. "We can talk about our boyfriends. Especially Sae-chan's new one..."

Kushina looked up at this. "Sae has a boyfriend? Who?"

Mikoto wagged her index finger. "Ah-ah-ah! You'll have to spend the night to find out!" She got to her feet and smiled broadly. "I'll tell Sae about it after I finish up today... Oh! What was the reason you wanted to talk to Yase-senpai?"

Kushina blinked several seconds, trying to recollect her original intention of coming to the hospital. She lightly tapped her fist down to her palm when she remembered. "Oh! Yase told me about how I can use my chakra nature to heal some wounds..."

"Is that so?" Mikoto tilted her head to the side. She smiled and motioned with one hand towards the hallway. "I can show you where she is... Follow me."

_

* * *

_

"Uh... I'm not sure..." Minato murmured hesitantly. One hand was in his pocket, the other ruffling his own hair. Blue eyes looked at the aging Hokage, who was staring at him from his office seat. Sarutobi tilted his head forward expectantly, one hand on a wooden quill. He sighed and looked down.

"Really now? I'm sure you'd be a great teacher."

"I... don't think I can..."

"... Would you be convinced if you knew that one of your students is Sakumo's son?"

"...!" Minato's blue eyes had trailed to the floor, then instantly shot back up to the Hokage. "Sakumo's...? You mean... Hatake Sakumo? The Shiroi Kiba?"

"There is only one Hatake Sakumo, but yes." Sarutobi dipped his head into a nod. "He's still rather young... Did you know he graduated the academy at the age of 6?"

"Six!" Minato exclaimed, eyes widening. "How old is he now?"

"Around 11..."

"What's he been doing for the past five years?"

"Since there were no other available teammates at his age, we stuck him in some of the more advanced classes... Though he's flown through them all." Sarutobi sighed a bit. "So we're deciding it's about time he's joined up with some teammates anyway, since he's at least close of age..."

Minato tilted his head forward instantly. "He's a genius?"

"Sakumo _was_ his father, after all..." Sarutobi sighed and leaned back. "But what do you say? Kakashi has.... high expectations.. for the teacher. I have a feeling you'll be able to fit his needs."

Minato rubbed his neck a couple of times, and then lowered it back down to his side. "Hatake Kakashi, huh... Is he the only student, or do I get two more?"

"Two more... Kakashi needs to learn teamwork." Sarutobi shook his head sadly. "He isolates himself."

"Because Sakumo's...?" Minato trailed off and stopped himself. "But I understand... It'll be a challenge, and an odd change of pace, but I guess I'll take on some students."

_

* * *

_

**Author(es)'s notes:**  
Kilala**: **Another tinny skip forward in the middle of the fic. The beginning part was about late summer, early autumn. After the battle it's spring. Sorry, again, for the small skip forwards.

But I had some fun typing out after the skip. xP

Yeeeyyy. Kakashi guys. C: I'm excited.  
But yeah. I hope you guys had a better Christmas than I did. I'll be updating next year! x3 Hopefully it won't take long, since Kakashi guys finally make their debut. x'D


	28. Here In Your Arms

**Chapter XXVIII: Here In Your Arms**

"You're going to teach students?" Kushina blinked in surprise as she leaned against the door frame, arms folded and her head tilted back slightly to look up at the blond. Minato nodded a bit sheepishly with a nervous grin, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Yeah... One of them is a prodigy so I'm kinda nervous..." He admitted. Kushina tipped her head forward in interest, then stepped backwards as if granting him permission to enter.

"Daylian-nii-san isn't here today..." Kushina mumbled as she closed the door behind him. It was Minato's turn to tilt his head forward. He stuck out his tongue to lick half his lip for a bit, then immediately withdrew it back into his mouth when the kunoichi asked him another question.

"When do you get to meet the brats?"

"Err..." Minato chuckled a bit at the question. "Tomorrow..."

"... Haaa?" Kushina raised a brow from where she stood behind him, hands on her hips. "Tomorrow? Isn't that a bit early?"

"Well... No... I found out a few days ago, actually..."

"And you didn't tell me?"

"No, it's just!" Minato spun around to defend himself, hands raised as he thought of something decent to use as an excuse. "You... were busy with Mikoto-san and Inosae-san..."

"That was only for two days..." Kushina pointed out with a red brow still quirked. Minato lightly scratched the side of his neck.

"... I was... um..."

"Close to chickening out?" The red-haired kunoichi guessed for him. The blonds' shoulders slumped as he hung his head.

"Yeah, basically..."

Minato felt his cheeks being cupped, his head tilting slightly so he was staring straight into Kushina's eyes. She was staring back with a serious expression, which gradually softened as she smiled. "Listen to me: You'll make a great teacher. Just don't turn out like your teacher, all perverted like that..."

Minato laughed and placed his hands over hers, leaning forward to kiss her. "You really tempt me sometimes, though..."

"Oh?" Kushina murmured softly into the kiss, the question she was about to ask having melted away. Her hands moved from his face to his neck when she felt his tongue glide along her lower lip. Minato smirked a bit after their tongues fondled, pulling back and licking his lip.

"What can I say? Hormones can go mad sometimes." Minato murmured with a chuckle as he moved his own hands down to her waist. Kushina was red at this point, pouting slightly as she tiptoed to kiss him again, deeply this time. Minato exhaled shakily as if trying to restrain himself, eyes slowly falling shut as he returned the fervent kiss.

Lips parted and tongues playing, the two slowly managed to stumble their way to the small single bed. The two parted as Kushina landed on her back, her hair splayed across the sheets. Minato crouched over her, his hands at the side of her shoulders, holding him up. Blue eyes stared down at her longingly as he caught his breath for a couple of seconds.

"This is exactly what I mean..." He murmured huskily.

Kushina stared up at his for several seconds, and then sat up a bit to peck him lightly on the lips. She wrapped her arms around his neck, depending on him to hold them up. "You have a lot of restraint..." She mumbled with her face flushed red. "But not yet... I'm fine like this." Kushina smiled a bit and leaned back, pulling Minato down with her. The blond stared down into her eyes and then eventually cracked a smile at hers.

"Alright." Minato murmured as he kissed her again

_

* * *

_

"Ugh, are you kidding? We're going to be the last ones to see our teacher at this rate...!"

"I'm sure he'll be here shortly... And there's still three other teams here as well..."

"... Reminds me of you, Uchiha... You're always late too... I don't like this teacher already."

Minato couldn't help but inwardly face-palm at the last comment, standing outside the door to observe his students. Judging by the long pause, and the rather... rude comment, Minato had to guess that was Kakashi. He heard the girl speaking a few times, and the last one was an Uchiha, as he had just been informed by Kakashi. The blond sighed softly and scratched his head, closing his eyes to think to himself a bit.

"... How long are you going to lounge around outside?"

Minato blinks at the student's voice, and then laughs a bit nervously as he turns around to enter through the door. "Sorry, sorry..." He was about to say that he was nervous, but he had to set an example for these students, right?

His eyes instantly fall on a silver-haired student, and falter a bit at how alike he was to Sakumo. Take away the mask and you'd have a spitting image of the White Fang. Suppressing the second of surprise, Minato grins at the three.

"Umm. You three, right? Come on." He turned around and smiled at the other waiting teams, leading his new students out of the door. Minato rubbed his neck as he wandered down the Academy halls, feeling slightly nostalgic from the place.

"Ano... Sensei?" The blond blinked out of his reminiscing and spun around, walking backwards as he lowered his blue gaze down to the kunoichi. He had to admit, she looked a little frail, definitely not built for fighting...

"What will we be doing first?"

Minato stopped for half a second and then continued walking, recalling his genin days as he strode down the halls with the three behind him. "Hmm... Well we should introduce ourselves to each other, right?" He smiled over his shoulder. "... Let's meet at the training grounds."

"... Ha? So we're going separate ways or something?" The Uchiha folded his arms and raised a brow, which vanished behind the rim of the orange goggles he was wearing.

"... That's right." Minato continued to smile. "I just want to see something. See you there." He spun around and raised his hand in a wave, then vanished in a blur. The Uchiha genin gaped a bit, pointing at the spot the blond was last standing.

"He's fast!"

"No duh..."

-

Minato made himself comfortable in the tree branch, leaning against the base of the tree and folding one leg over the other. He crossed his arms then trailed his gaze upwards to focus, detecting each of their chakras. He sighed warily when he found that Kakashi's was well away from that of the other two, whom were sticking together unlike the former. The blond scratched his neck idly and closed his eyes, waiting for the three to approach the training grounds.

Teamwork.

He didn't want to have to fail Kakashi... no, any of them for not having that one important thing. With the corner of his mouth twitching, he silently hoped that they would understand before time ran out.

Kakashi was the first to arrive, waiting by the three stumps with some impatience rolling off him. Minato heard the kunoichi's voice calling out loud, and then got up and Shunshin'd to stand atop one of the stumps. He lowered to sit down, looking at the three.

"Let's introduce ourselves, shall we? Just give a little bit of background information, too... Like dreams and such... Oh, here, I'll go first. I'm Namikaze Minato... I'm, uh, rather young compared to the other senseis, anddd... I'm a student of Jiraiya-sama. My dreams...? Well... I'm not too sure on that, but we can talk more later." He smiled down at the three, slouching forward and resting his forearms on his knees.

"Jiraiya? As in... of the Densetsu no Sannin?" The kunoichi questioned with a bright look in her eyes. The Uchiha next to her grinned a bit.

"Hey, we got a good teacher then, right?"

"..."

Minato glimpsed over at the silent student, then sat up straight to rub the back of his neck. "Well... One of you two can go next, since he's not so talkative..."

"Hai! My name is Rin... And, um... I'm learning to be a medic." Rin wriggled shyly, looking away. "Because Tsunade-sama fought for the idea of a medic on a team."

Minato smiled. "I remember that debate... I think it's a rather fine idea, don't you think? I'm sure you'll prove to be a very good medic of this team."

"Y-yes! Thank you..." Rin smiled shyly again. Minato turned his blue gaze to the black-haired genin.

"Ossu, sensei! I'm Obito of the Uchiha Clan, one of the greatest clans in Konoha! I'm going to be a strong ninja one day... And prove a few certain people wrong!" As if to finish his statement, Obito turned his head to glare at Kakashi through his orange-tinted goggles. Kakashi was only turned away slightly, arms folded and giving them half a cold shoulder as he brushed off Obito's glare.

The blond instantly sensed there would be some kind of difficulty among those two. "Oh. I'm sure you'll be an excellent ninja, Obito... And you?" He looked at Kakashi, his eyes boring into the younger ninja's shoulder until Kakashi finally turned to look at him.

"Hatake Kakashi. I don't really feel like sharing any information. I don't have any dreams." Kakashi almost spat. Minato stared at him levelly, then sighed and broke the gaze.

"Alright. Now that we've got that over with..." He jumped down from the stump and dug blindly through the weapon pouch on his hip. There were a few hit-pitched rings as he dug two bells from it. "I hope you three are prepared. This will be your final test."

"What?! We already took a damn test though! We're full-fledged ninja now!" Obito instantly protested.

Minato looked at the two bells, then back down at his students. "This is a requirement. You're going to be pitted against a Jounin- aka, me -to see if you're fit enough to be a 'shinobi'." Minato tied the bells to his hips, which rung only a couple of times. "Use whatever weapon you may. Any techniques, any jutsus... Also, you'll be tied up if-"

"But wait sensei!" Rin protested. "There are only two bells... Is one of us gonna have to go back to the Academy?"

"... You have until the sun is directly overhead." Minato only smiled as he pointed upwards. "I hope you guys are fast. I enjoy a good game of tag."

"But, sensei-!" Rin stepped forward a second late, Minato already having vanished in a Shunshin.

Minato appeared quite a ways off from the clearing, landing on a branch and looking over his shoulder. He felt Kakashi's chakra instantly move to give chase, followed by Rin then Obito's. Minato sighed inwardly at Kakashi's haste, then vanished forward in a shunshin to create some distance for thinking time.

The blond glanced over his shoulder when he sensed Kakashi steadily gaining on him, slowing his pace to see what this 'prodigy' would be planning. He kept glancing over his shoulder, and when he turned his head forward, he instantly jumped to a higher branch to avoid the net that came flying from the front.

"Phew." Minato sighed a bit and quickly climbed the tree to avoid the Bunshin that was hot in pursuit, jumping to another, bigger tree and climbing to the top of that one as well. The blond looked down at where he saw two silver-haired ninjas coming up, and then jumped off the branch to vanish back downwards into the foliage.

"Ah!" Minato yelled a bit when he found himself hanging by his arm, a wire wrapped tightly around his forearm. He cringed in pain, his shoulder on fire as he raised his other arm to slice away at the wire. He lowered onto his knee as he reached the ground, grasping his shoulder and jerking it to make sure it didn't pop out of the socket. Sensing Kakashi's approach, Minato instinctively vanished in a Hiraishin to the other side of the training grounds.

"Ow..." The blond grumbled as he stumbled over to a tree, moving his arm to stretch his shoulder a bit. "My arm could've popped out..."

"Surprise!" Obito's voice yelled as the Uchiha dropped down from the over head branch with a kunai in hand. Minato looked up and sharply reacted by grabbing the arm with the kunai in it, using Obito's momentum to fling him to the side. Minato sighed softly.

"You don't yell out to give your position away..." Minato advised as he stretched his arm. He looked down at where Obito was sitting up, his goggles pushed up to his forehead and his face buried in the sleeve of his navy jacket. Minato blinked in surprise, clearly startled.

"Are you... crying...?" He asked hesitantly, wondering if he actually threw the genin too hard.

"No!!! I just got dirt in my eyes, that's all!!" Obito yelled back, lowering his arm and scowling. Minato could see some of the water in the corner of his eyes, though he noted that Obito's face was nowhere near dusty. Half-frowning, the blond rubbed his neck.

Instinctively, he jumped over Rin's charging form. Before his feet touched the ground, he vanished in a Hiraishin and appeared on the large tree he had jumped from. Minato rested on one of its higher branches, making sure to tone down his chakra as he searched the training grounds.

Kakashi's chakra was rather weak, but it was still there, and quite a ways off from where Obito was charging off with Rin stumbling along behind. The corner of his mouth twitched as he slumped into a sigh. _Come on, I know you three can do this... Look beneath the underneath._ He raised his hand to his eyes, shading them from the sun as he checked its position.

"..." Minato's shoulder slumped and he flickered his gaze to where Obito was heading. He scratched his head and then vanished in a Hiraishin there. He appeared right behind Obito, raising a brow when he saw what the Uchiha was doing.

"..." The Jounin folded his arms and kept his brow raised, staring at Obito until the genin finally got up and turned around, yelping in surprise and stumbling backwards.

"Wha, wh, what?! How'd you get here so fast?!" Obito demanded as he dropped the bentos, pointing openly at his teacher.

"Hey, I was saving those for all of us." Minato looked down at the dropped boxes. "You're not supposed to eat."

"You never mentioned that." Obito growled.

"You can't eat on a mission." Minato sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "... And it was one of my rules... but Rin spoke the same time I did so you couldn't really hear it." Sighing and moving forward, he gathered up the bentos and slapped away evertime Obito tried to snatch at the bells on his hip. Once Minato stacked the food properly, he grabbed Obito by the back of his neck and pulled him into several swift Shunshins.

"Wha- whoa, that's not fair!" Obito struggled, though Minato already had him wired to the tree stump. "Hey!! Come on!" Obito snarled as he kicked out with his feet. Minato moved back a few paces, and then looked up at the sky.

"Stay here. The other two have a few minutes left." Minato murmured as he vanished. He heard Obito's protests increase drastically behind him.

"..." Minato glanced over his shoulder when the yelling ended rather abruptly, but turned his head back to the front when he sensed Rin's chakra. Kakashi stood before him, feet parted into a readying stance and a few kunais drawn. The blond stared at him for several seconds, and then rubbed the back of his neck.

"You're not going to help Obito out like Rin is?"

"It doesn't require three people to cut through some wires." Kakashi muttered before he threw one of the kunais. Minato faintly heard the snapping of some wire, and ducked beneath the barrage of shuriken that flew at him from an angle. The blond swiftly leaned back into a flip to avoid Kakashi's first taijutsu strike, vanishing in a shunshin to dodge the second.

The blond barely had much breathing time, having to constantly dodge numerous traps that Kakashi had smartly laid out, and avoid the ninjutsu and taijutsu. Relief overflowed Minato as he head the alarm go off, making Kakashi freeze in mid attack. The blond's shoulders slumped as he was finally able to catch his breath.

"Phew..." Minato only silently motioned towards where the tree stumps were, and vanished. When he appeared, Rin jumped to her feet, hiding the kunai she was using to slice through the wires that bound Obito.

"Fuck!" Obito snarled.

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing!" Obito growled as he hung his head, muttering to himself. Minato folded his arms a bit skeptically, and inwardly sighed when Kakashi appeared.

"Well... None of you got the bells. Obito broke one of the rules.. that Rin didn't let me finish." Minato added, turning his head to look at the kunoichi. Rin's eyes widened and she turned red, looking down at Obito apologetically. "... And you didn't see it."

"See what?" Obito growled after he raised his head and narrowed his eyes through his goggles.

"Exactly..." Minato sighed and scratched his head. "... I guess I can give you guys one more chance. But if you fail this... Well, you don't have what it means to be a ninja."

"Are you kidding?!"

"Nope. It's another game of tag." Minato spun around on his heels. "... Look beneath the underneath. Especially you, Kakashi." The blond glimpsed over his shoulder for a second, then lurched forward and vanished swiftly in a Shunshin. Kakashi scowled and darted forward, stopping when Obito yelled.

"Wait you! Dammit, at least help me out!"

Kakashi scowled darkly from behind his mask, dropping his arms and turning his body slightly so that he could look at the Uchiha. Rin was lowered onto one knee, trying to cut through the wires. Obito was glaring at Kakashi right in the eye, gritting his teeth.

"Come on, aren't we a team?!" Obito barked out just as Kakashi was about to turn and leave.

"..." Kakashi stopped once more, and thought about what he said for a second. He thought and thought silently to himself, before his onyx eyes widened slightly. "...! ... Che... So that's the point of all this?" He growled to himself. "Fine."

The silver-haired Genin spun gracefully on his heels and walked back towards the kunoichi and the Uchiha. Obito looked stunned at this, his eyes widening behind his orange-tinted goggles. Rin's slightly flushed face looked a bit surprised too, but she had a slightly glad look in her eyes.

You can't just cut through the wire with a regular kunai." Kakashi muttered after he inspected the binding.

"Huh?" Obito and Rin questioned in unison. Kakashi refrained from rolling his eyes, and took out his own kunai.

"It's reinforced with some chakra. All you have to do to cancel it out is do this." He gripped the kunai for a few seconds to channel his own chakra, and then easily sliced through the wires. Obito sighed in relief, feeling the blood freely circulating back to his arms. He yanked away the limp binding and jumped to his feet, fisting his hands.

"Come on, let's go find him!"

"..." Minato beamed brightly from where he was watching this, cutting off his chakra so that Kakashi wouldn't be able to sense him. _So he found out._ He jumped off the tree branch and vanished in a shunshin before he could reach the ground, appearing on the tree stump Obito was bound to.

"Hey!!"

Obito was about to run off, but stumbled and face planted at Minato's yell. He rolled over and rubbed the dust from his face. "Wha... Wait, huh?"

"You guys pass." Minato grinned as he sat down.

"... A wha?"

"How?" Rin asked with disbelief in her eyes. "We didn't get the bells though..."

"You two weren't aware of the main reason behind this test... But you two had it to begin with." Minato smiled and tilted his head towards Kakashi. "Care to enlighten them?"

"... Team work." Kakashi muttered.

"... That's it?"

"Yup." Minato jumped down from the stump, removing the bells from his hip. "In reality all three of you should have been fighting along side from the beginning... That's why there are only two bells, to throw you guys off. You had to look beneath the underneath."

"Ohh... See, so it was Kakashi's fault we almost didn't pass!" Obito declared smugly with his nose up in the air. "Isn't that right, Rin? I'm glad we work together."

Minato smiled. "... Remember those bentos you were trying to snatch, Obito? Let's go get them, shall we?"

"Alright!! I'm freaking starving!" The Uchiha yelled as he bent his knees, jumping forward with chakra propelling him into a shunshin.

"Oh, wait, Obito...! I know you too well; you're going to eat two of those bentos!" Rin cried as she ran after him.

The blond chuckled as he slipped his hands into his pockets, striding after them. Things would be rather interesting... He glanced back at Kakashi, whom walked at a much slower pace.

"... Team work _is_ important, Kakashi." Minato said as he paused until Kakashi was along side of him. "You'll see this someday... I'm hoping it's not too far into the future."

"Hm." Kakashi grunted. "I'm depending on your guidance to make me stronger... sensei."

Minato blinked down at the adolescence and then smiled. He pulled his hand out of his pocket and ruffled Kakashi's silver hair, receiving an irritated growl in response. "I'm sure you won't need much of my help, but I'll be here if you need any questions... You're quite the fine ninja... All you really need is more team work and something to fight for."

"..."

"Senseiii!! Obito is threatening to eat Kakashi's portion!" Minato looked up and rubbed his neck. "Uh. Don't do that, Obito...? Kakashi, go defend your lunch, would you?"

Before Minato could finish the last word, the silver-haired genin was off in a blur. Minato warily chuckled to himself.

This was going to be interesting...

_

* * *

_

Author(ess)'s notes:  
**Kilala: **I don't like school. -w- My grades slipped a bit... So much for a 4.0 GPA. Dx  
And I've been kinda stressing out, getting sick, etc. Sorry it took a while, but I'm still dedicated to the fic mind you guys. 3 Your reviews make me feel better, thanks.


	29. Brilliant Snow

**Chapter XXIX: Brilliant Snow**

"Sensei?"

"Hm?" Minato's blue eyes looked up and at his student, his attention turned away from the scroll he was reading. The brown haired kunoichi blinked at her young teacher from where he was sitting in the chair, then proceeded to blink at the several books that were piled on his desk. Minato followed her brown gaze and then smiled lightly.

"It's good to read up on jutsus and such... But were you looking for me, Rin?"

"Um... No, I was looking for Kakashi and Obito... I was passing by and I saw you in here, so now I'm wondering even more as to where they are..." Rin explained with a worried expression, her sight moving downwards to look at her hands fiddling together shyly. Minato tilted his head slightly, and then leaned back against his chair, the books and scrolls on the desk now forgotten as he focused on his student.

"Were you with them?"

"Yes... But then they started arguing as usual and then vanished... I couldn't keep up with them..." Rin admitted the last part sadly, her cheeks red with embarrassment. Minato saw this and leaned forward to pat her on the shoulder with a light smile to get her to cheer up.

"Come on, don't be like that... With your lack of speed comes your strength in the medic field. It's a very fine job for a smart kunoichi such as you." The blond smiled. He glanced at his small barricade of books and scrolls, and then stretched, deciding that his student's issues were more important and that he could catch up on his reading later. Minato got up to his feet and guided Rin out of the library, onto Konoha's busy streets.

"I have an idea as to where they are..." Minato glanced down at her and saw that her eyes were filled with some hope.

"Really?"

"Mhm... Knowing those two, anyways... Even though it's only been a couple of months or so since we were grouped together." Minato slipped his hands into his pockets, his gaze rolling upwards towards the sky that rivaled his blue eyes. "Hahaa... How long ago did they vanish?" He asked, reverting his gaze back to the sole kunoichi of his team.

"About ten minutes ago..." Rin mumbled.

The blond Jounin returned his line of sight to the streets before them. "Alright... Let's quickly head on over to the training grounds then..."

* * *

A loud grunt escaped him as he was tossed ruthlessly to the damp ground, winding him for several seconds before he could gather some air into his lungs to growl. Obito rolled onto his stomach and pushed himself up with his arms, gritting his teeth and ignoring the fact that his orange-tinted goggles were lop-sided. More than anything did he want his eyes to be blood-red and pierce through Kakashi's chest, just to show him that he wasn't worthless. Disappointingly, his eyes remained the same onyx color, and he pushed himself to his feet.

"Fucking jerk..." Obito muttered as he drew his kunai, his glaring eyes never moving away from the silver-haired teenager.

Kakashi only raised a brow, his eyes cynical before the expression was suppressed. Drawing his own knife, he lurched forward in amazing speed for a ninja his age. Obito growled and darted into a sprint, reading his kunai and thrusting it forward.

A pair of hands, carefully timed, pushed their kunai-wielding wrists away from each other, knocking both of them off balance and stumbling a couple of feet. Minato's arms lowered and he glanced at the two calmly, before he looked over at the kunoichi who was approaching.

"I found them, Rin."

"Sensei..." Obito murmured, staring at his teacher's back before he looked away, ashamed. Kakashi only kept his back turned, sheathing the kunai and folding his arms. Minato shook his head as Rin approached Obito to see if he had any injuries.

"You two..." Minato started with a sigh. "Are acting rather immature right now..."

"Me? Kakashi's the one who starts it! He _always_ starts it!" Obito immediately barked his protest, eyes narrowed. "I'm sick and tired of him putting me down! I'm tired of him thinking he's all bad ass!" The Uchiha gritted his teeth after this, as if trying to suppress everything else he wanted to say. Minato looked at him in sympathy, then looked at Rin who shifted her gaze sadly between the two.

"Obito..." Minato started, but was cut off while he was trying to think of something to say.

"I actually _try_ and treat him like a team mate, you know? But all I ever get in return is disrespect! You don't think I get enough of that from my family, Kakashi?" Obito raised his voice to a yell, to the point where Rin was quietly trying to get him to calm down. Minato tried not to sigh, but one slipped when he heard Kakashi mutter something like 'at least you have one'.

"Obito, calm down." Minato spoke in a firm and slightly stressed voice, which was enough to get the agitated Uchiha to close his mouth. "Rin, escort him home, please. Kakashi, don't go disappearing on me now. You know as much as everyone else in this village that I can catch you without trying." The blond murmured when he sensed that the silver-haired ninja was about to shunshin out of the area.

Minato folded his arms as he watched Rin help Obito up to his feet, and walk along side of him as she whispered quietly to have him calm down. Minato could soon feel the agitated aura around Obito fading, into a calmer and almost happy feeling. Minato sighed in relief and then turned to Kakashi, arms still folded. Kakashi's back was still turned to his teacher, arms crossed as well.

"Kakashi..."

"I don't need to be lectured, sensei. I've heard enough from every teacher at the Academy." Kakashi almost spat, which made the corner of Minato's mouth twitch.

"Can I at least ask why you have a tendency to treat Obito this way?" Minato questioned.

"He's an idiot who doesn't go by the rules at all. He's a failure of a ninja and he probably only graduated the Academy because he's an Uchiha."

Minato could easily sense the irritation that rolled off Kakashi for several seconds, before it stopped abruptly, as if the Genin noticed that he was releasing a hateful aura. Still, Minato could see him tapping his fingers against his arm in an agitated manner. With a sigh, Minato threw his head back to look upwards at the sky, arms folded as he thought of what to say to Kakashi.

"Obito didn't graduate because he's an Uchiha, that's just being discriminating. And a ninja doesn't necessarily have to follow every little detail in the ninja rule book, although it is preferred in most cases..." Minato sighed and stopped his talking, trying to find what else to say. "Kakashi, you're letting your life be fritted away by all the little details in the ninja handbook... Didn't Hokage-sama talk to you guys several times in the Academy?"

"..."

"... And yes, he's probably mentioned that the ninja handbook is good to reference upon, but he's trying to show you guys that it's also important to love and cherish the village..."

"... You don't understand." Kakashi muttered, turning his head slightly as if tempted to look over his shoulder to glare. "I'll be taking my leave now, sensei."

"... Go on..." Minato shook his head after deciding it was best to leave his student be for now. With Minato's approval, Kakashi jumped into a shunshin, immediately leaving the training grounds, and leaving Minato to sigh stressfully. He ruffled his naturally spiked hair and shook his head, taking one step forward and then vanishing from the grounds.

* * *

"What's wrong? You look pretty tired..."

Minato didn't bother to turn his head to see who it was, instantly recognizing the voice of Jiraiya. It was no surprise that Jiraiya could also tell that Minato was tired by the way he was slouched with his hands in his pockets, wandering aimlessly down Konoha's infinite streets. Minato exhaled a sigh, which only made his slouch worse.

"I think I'm a little too young for this, sensei..." Minato mumbled. "I think Hokage-sama should have waited until I'm at least 20 or something."

Jiraiya tilted his head forward. "... Oh right, the students." Jiraiya rubbed his head. "Come on, Minato... Have more confidence than that... I mean you'll be turning 18 in what... another four months or so?" The white-haired Sennin grinned and heavily patted Minato on the back, nearly making his tired student stumble. "You should be honored that sensei even picked you."

"I don't have enough experience, though..." Minato sighed after he recovered from nearly falling over. He still slouched warily as he frowned a bit. "And Kakashi's kinda a handful... He's really..."

"Troublesome?" Jiraiya guessed. He used one hand, grabbed a hold of Minato's shoulder, and easily straightened out the blonds' back. Minato didn't seem to notice as he thought for several seconds.

"No..."

"Disrespectful?"

"Not exactly..."

"Up tight?"

"I guess that'd describe him..." Minato sighed again. "Since Sakumo... Well, yeah... He just looks to the ninja rulebook like it's a god in the flesh or something. Err, maybe not like that... Blah, I don't know. I can't describe it right now; I'm worn out from trying to keep him from fighting with Obito."

Jiraiya watched as Minato rubbed his face with both hands, as if trying to rub some of the stress away. "... You'll get use to it after a while. And soon enough you'll know how to deal with them." Jiraiya laughed a little as he patted Minato on the back again. "Just like I did you guys."

"I now know how most senseis feel now..." Blue eyes met black ones. "And I think my respect for you guys just went up tenfold."

Jiraiya stared down at his student for several seconds, before his grin eventually turned into a laugh. "Thanks, I suppose. Now come on, cheer up and stop moping around like that. You'll develop the patience. Go on." Jiraiya gave Minato a firm, final pat on the back, as if urging the blond to keep going forward. Minato grunted slightly at the rough contact, but grinned up at his much-taller teacher and nodded.

"Thanks, sensei."

"Eh, no problem. It's easy to cheer you up, anyways. All I really have to do is talk on mindlessly... Or just mention Kushina's name." Jiraiya's eyes were rolled upwards to the sky in an aloof manner; before they looked down to see the blonds' expression. There was a light coloring to his face, and he was trying not to smile.

"Shut up, sensei." Minato mumbled, adjusting his footing and letting his smile break before he vanished.

Jiraiya stopped from where he was walking in the middle of the dusty street, staring off in the direction Minato had left for. He turned his head and glimpsed in all directions, before slipping his hands in his pockets and walking off casually towards one street, as if finding what he was searching for.

"Don't go running off on me now, Hatake kid."

* * *

A soft smile crossed her features. Her brown-red eyes were staring down at the larger flower, and her fingers delicately touched the rim of the light blue petal. She continued to smile lightly as she raised her other hand, carefully pouring the contents of the simple cup into the flower pot, being mindful as to how much water she poured. Kushina poured the remaining water into the other pots, knowing that they required a little less water. She glanced at the small pot of bamboo, then remembered that they only had to be watered twice a week. She shrugged and put away her small watering cup, turning around and leaving the flowers to absorb the fluid.

Kushina raised her arms over her head in a stretch, exhaling a long yawn as she did so.

The days had been slowly cooling and unnervingly peaceful... A recent battle almost a month ago left both villages' attacking force rather crippled, although mostly Konoha's forces took damage since Suna had jumped into the fray once more, siding with Iwa and nearly annihilating Konoha's force. If the Legendary Sannin weren't there...

Kushina paused and thought for a second, before a shiver slithered up her spine. Perhaps she wouldn't be back here now. How lucky Konoha was to have a prestigious medical ninja such as Tsunade. The red-haired kunoichi glimpsed over at Daylian, who was snoring softly from where he was on the floor, tangled in a mess of a bed sheet. She could see the jagged scar that ran diagonally downwards from his left shoulder, the rest of it hidden from view from his shirt as it traced downwards to his stomach. Kushina's eyes softened. Every now and then Daylian would complain about the wound, and she'd be forced to check up on it and make sure it was healing up nicely. Thank god Nagasaki Yase, the medical kunoichi she met in battle, had taught her some basic to intermediate medical jutsus; it would have made Kushina feel a little hollow inside if she could only sit around and watch as Daylian grimaced when he made a bad move that made the scar flare up in pain.

Kushina found herself staring at her brother-by-law, and rolled her eyes when he snorted and turned over, entangling himself more with the bed sheet. She smoothed out a couple of wrinkles in the tank top and shorts she wore, before taking her white-colored ninja robe and slipping it on, tying it shut with a red-hued obi. Kushina looked down and examined the robe, noting that it was shrinking- the bottom of it was just about in the middle of her thighs. Kushina frowned lightly before she shrugged, spinning on her heels to head for the exit of the small apartment.

Just as she opened the door, she paused and leaned back, finding a tall Jounin standing before her, a hand raised and balled into a fist as if to knock on the door.

"Ah." Minato stopped mid-knock and lowered his hand, smiling. "Uh... Were you about to go somewhere or did you know I was going to knock?"

Kushina immediately returned the smile. "I was gonna go see you and the kids."

"... Boy, what a thing to wake up to. Did I miss something here? 'You and the kids'?"

Kushina looked over her shoulder, and Minato only blinked as he thought about what Kushina said for a second, his mouth dropping open slightly and his face growing red. For some reason, Daylian always had a knack for making some of the most innocent situations awkward... This was one of them. Minato quietly covered his eyes in embarrassment, his face still red at the very thought of having a kid with Kushina.

Apparently, Kushina was completely oblivious of what she said. "What? I dunno what you're talking about Da-nii... I mean his students _are_ kids..."

"There's only like a six or seven year difference." Daylian pointed out as he slowly pushed himself into a sitting position, as if trying not to irritate his stinging chest and stomach. He shrugged. "Sorry, I just woke up hearing something weird. Could you blame me?"

"There's a five year difference between us..." Kushina muttered under her breath with a roll of her eyes, before looking back at Minato. She blinked when she saw the rather flustered expression and immediately became confused. "Are you okay?"

Daylian snorted. "Oh look, he's thinking of something perverted. Watch out- I think his teacher really _is_ rubbing off on him."

"Absolutely not!" Minato blurted after trying to make the red in his cheeks recede. "Geez, Daylian... What makes you say that...?" He grumbled with a soft sigh following, rubbing his cheeks painfully.

"Well... First of all, your face is beat red. Because I pointed out something was odd with the way Kushina said that one sentence. And, as we all know, kids come from being in a girl's belly for 9 months, and before those 9 months is sex-" Daylian would have probably continued nonchalantly if Kushina hadn't shoved Minato out the doorway and slammed the wooden door shut behind her.

The black-haired guardian snorted in amusement, lying down on his back with a yawn. "Finally gone... I can get some more peaceful sleep."

* * *

"..." Kushina and Minato were walking side by side down the streets, though either of the two could even think of looking at each other while that conversation still lingered in their minds. Minato dared to glimpse over at Kushina for a brief moment, and found her hand clutching her half-robe by her chest, her own gaze adverted. The blond wanted to do the same to his own chest, especially with his heart ramming painfully against his rib cage. Not wanting their relationship to be awkward from now on, Minato raised a fist to his mouth and feigned a couch, taking initiative to divert their attention away from _that_.

"Uhm... They're doing fine with their training..." He started awkwardly. "My students, I mean... Though um... Kakashi and Obito fight a lot..."

Kushina glimpsed at him for a second, then instantly looked back to the streets, her face tinted slightly red. Her grip on her half robe loosened slightly, but she could still feel that her heart rate was high. "Really? Training fighting or..."

"Arguing fighting... The kind that becomes an actual fight after a while..." Minato sighed softly. "Sensei says that I'll learn to deal with it, but..." He trailed off after a while, wandering off in his silent thoughts. Kushina looked at him, and stared long enough to notice the troubled expression in his blue eyes.

"You're not really use to it, right?" Kushina guessed. Minato turned his head slightly to look at her, and gave a soft smile when he realized she hit the nail on the head.

"Yeah... I'm hoping it gets better... I mean, Rin is really worried they might actually hurt eachother in the future..." Minato murmured as he rubbed the back of his neck. "It's also kind of troubling seeing her so down about it too... I'm not really too sure what to say to her, especially since she always comes to me about it..."

Kushina tilted her head forward at this. "Then that means she really trusts you, right?"

"..." Minato nodded in silence, and then sighed. "Yeah, but... I'm kinda worried I'll let her down... And then I have to figure out a way to keep Kakashi and Obito from fighting... I'm too inexperienced for this." He concluded as he rubbed his neck once more. And that was how he honestly felt; his constant fear of disappointing his students and being unable to keep them from bickering was just raising his stress level. Add war and a possible early death in the future and it was just a big iron ball of nerve-wracking stress.

"Well if the Hokage picked you, then you probably are experienced enough." Kushina shrugged almost nonchalantly. "Right?"

Minato smiled softly at this; even if Kushina didn't seem like she was making him feel better, what she pointed out did make sense and made his heart feel a little more at ease. He extended an arm and wrapped it around Kushina's shoulder, pulling her against him as they kept walking. "Thank you."

* * *

Snow was beginning to fall in light waves. The frosted air forced all the leaves to fall off the branches of all the trees, leaving the forest barren and exposed. With the thick gray clouds constantly covering as far as the sky could stretch, it was hard to tell what time of day it was.

Kushina was staring at the wintery pallet scene of the forest. Normally, she would have enjoyed the peaceful scene, something that could have come out of a professional painter's brush. But it was rather hard to; she and several other platoons of Konoha ninja were on their way to battle, grimly. Konoha's own battle forces were measly due to the battle with Iwa and Suna, which was only a couple of months ago... Iwa's recovery had been way too fast for Konoha's comfort. Now here they were, trudging across the snowing country tiredly since there had been sightings of an Iwa force moving across the Kusa Kuni.

"Let's pick up the pace once more, resting is over!" The more senior Jounins yelled over their shoulders from where they were leading the large platoon. "Shunshins on our lead!"

There was a ripple effect of chakra as everyone shifted their positions, then the large force vanished into the barren, snowy forest. Kushina glanced around grimly as the Konoha ninja moved forward, and shook her head when she didn't spot the Sannin.

_What's the outcome of this battle going to be like?_

Kushina just thought silently to herself as they moved across the country, picturing different scenarios, thinking of which jutsus to use, whether to go offensive or defensive, that she hadn't realized that they nearly arrived at the border of the country. She nearly ran into the kunoichi in front of her, the senior shinobi in the front coming to a halt.

"Positions!"

The platoons immediately broke and moved in with their own individual teams, spreading out across Konoha's border, being sure to stay behind the edge of the forest where the trees stopped growing abruptly, indicating the end of the Hi no Kuni territory and the start of the Kusa one.

From where Kushina crouched in the branches of the barren tree, her red-brown eyes could only see white and gray. She spotted no silhouettes, no moving figures, only the gentle fall of snow. It was almost mesmerizing...

"_Kai_!"

Kushina felt herself jump, eyes flying open from being half closed. Her gaze snapped over to a kunoichi on her right, who only shook her into alertness. There was clearly tension in her muscles, by the way she grabbed Kushina. "You were under a genjutsu! We got flanked!"

Suddenly all the background noises came rushing at Kushina, and she stood up on the branch and spun around. Indeed, she could clearly see the battle going on without the leaves blocking the view, and cursed darkly under her breath. She saw numerous bodies and immediately assumed they were of Konoha ninja, jumping down from the tree and unrolling a scroll from her weapon pouch. The scroll fluttered to the ground as Kushina made several hand seals, covering her palm over the _Sui_ kanji in the middle. As she pulled her hand up, several chakra-manipulated gallons of water followed. Kushina made a couple of more hand signs, and the water molded to form spikes, thickly coated with chakra to do more than just simply soak the enemy. When she launched the Suiton spikes to give her allies an opening, she followed up with another set of seals, and this time a large pillar of water gushed out of the scroll, splashing Kushina and any nearby Konoha ninja.

Kushina only squinted and made another seal, holding it as she controlled the large mass of water, which pummeled a lot of the Iwa ninja away from the injured Konoha nin. Her allies took some serious damage from the surprise attack, but at least Kushina wasn't stupidly in a genjutsu and she'd be able to defend some of her teammates now...

As the Konoha ninja attacked after Kushina's Suiton diversion, Kushina picked up her scroll and vanished, finding a much more higher and stable position in a tree where she would be able to see better. She immediately spotted a ninja, a rather young one at that, slipping against the slippery snow footing and tumbling onto his back painfully with a gasp as air left his lungs. An Iwa ninja took advantage of this and lunged forward with a kunai, only to impale a Suiton that bubbled protectively over the fallen ninja. The Iwa ninja's eyes widened as his arm was caught, trying to yank it out of the Suiton's grip, his moves becoming more desperate as he felt the pressure increase on his forearm.

Kushina turned away as she squeezed her hand sign tighter, feeling the Iwa ninja's screech of pain. She withdrew the Suiton barrier, which instantly shot up to guard her from barrages of shuriken that were flung at her. Kushina flinched at the force, feeling the metal stars slam rather powerfully into her barrier. Now would be a good time to move...

Quickly gathering her scroll, Kushina vanished in a shunshin into another tree, scanning around warily to make sure no one was keeping an eye on her. She frowned when she saw that the Iwa ninja were beginning to push the Konoha forces backwards and out of their own country. She really didn't want to cut her chakra in half, but she had to help someway... Her hands quickly formed some seals that she memorized, a couple of Kage Bunshins appearing and landing on the ground, immediately rushing into battle to join the fray.

Kushina's shoulders slumped slightly, and she wondered where her chakra stamina went from some two years ago. _I made a ridiculous amount of Bunshins back then..._ Kushina rolled her eyes at herself, but returned her focus to the battles below. Occasionally she would send out Suiton spears to distract the Iwa ninja and give her allies some brief, split-second openings while she also defended the ones that were growing weary.

The red-haired kunoichi smirked a little darkly when it seemed as though Konoha was starting to have the upper hand, although slowly.

"_You're the one._"

Kushina's eyes widened at the whisper that was behind her, and she was about to spin around, only to be tackled off the branch. Kushina would have landed hard in the snow if she hadn't made a seal, withdrawing a Suiton spear mid-launch and turning its direction to knock the attacker off her back. When she felt the heavy weight off her back, Kushina extended her arms and used them to roll safely into the snow without harming herself. She immediately got to her feet, finding a massive black panther glaring at her in the face. It was lowered into an offensive crouch, slowly circling the kunoichi. Kushina could feel her limbs slowly freezing at the sight of its bared fangs and deadly thick claws, hackles raised and ears folded back in a deadly expression. The ferocious features diverted attention away from the oddly-colored teal stripe along the bridge of its nose, teal orbs with the black pupils narrowed into slits, and the massive paws that faded from teal to black.

For a split second, Kushina couldn't help but remember Daylian, with his violet eyes, as well as the almost-invisible tinges of violet in his black fur that matched those startling eyes. When Kushina looked back at the panther, she noticed that it stopped mid-paw step. The ferocious expression had completely vanished, though its mouth was open as if in shock. Its round ears were back to normal, showing that it was no longer hostile towards the kunoichi. Kushina took a slight step back, clearly wondering if it was going to feint an attack.

"Kushina...?"

The red-head's eyes widened when it _spoke_, but she was even more shocked when it knew her name.

"What...?"

Before she could even finish the word, the large feline quickly turned and darted away from her, launching itself back into the battle without so much as another glance or word. Kushina stared as the feline got lost in the chaos of the battle, and frowned slightly. _Who was that...?_

_

* * *

_

The snow behind them was being dotted red with blood. On the brink of exhaustion, they all kept moving forward. Some were passed out on the back of others, and the rest were trying to keep any untended wounds from being their deaths. Everyone was breathing heavily, heat clouds exhaling into the air with every breath, a sign that it was only getting colder. And they were only half way to their home village...

The battle's outcome was disastrous. Half of what remained of their forces all remembered seeing a large panther, as well as one of Iwa's generals, Iwata Takao, who was much too fast with his hidden blades for everyone's liking. Working together, the two enemies had caused collateral damage to the Konoha forces, sending them back into a shameful and weak retreat. They had first left the village in the morning with _at least_ 40 ninja, and now they were retreating with little as 15...

Kushina was one of the limping numbers, her head lowered in shame, knowing that she could have done _much_ better in at least defending her allies. Some tears threatened to leak out of her eyes, but she forced herself to keep it in, knowing that if they fell, they would sting some of the cuts she received on her cheeks. She was looking rather beat up, since she and Takao had a one-on-one match for a minute... His Fuuton attacks were much too quick for her to react without getting a few scratches first. Her clothes were also pretty torn up, bloodied in some places from some scratches that bled out. Kushina knew that if Minato saw the condition she was in, he'd probably have a heart attack.

She turned her head and spotted the sole medic that managed to escape the fray, busily going around and healing up the ninja she could, starting with the ones that were already passed out from blood loss and catching a ride on another ninja's back. The poor kunoichi medic looked exhausted, having to use so much chakra to try and keep everyone live.

"... We're almost to the village guys, you're doing great. Keep it up and we'll all be able to get properly treated and rested up..." One of the senior ninjas murmured, though he tried to sound confident, the exhaustion was evident in his voice. Everyone else just remained quiet, too tired or down to respond. Kushina lowered her head with a soft sigh as she followed the rest of the group, trying not to put so much weight on her left leg, which was more cut up from when she dodged a Fuuton a second too late.

"... Everyone who wants to has a right to collapse now." Another ninja tried to lighten the mood once he spotted the village gates in the distance. "They're coming to get us..."

"Ugh..." About half of the ninjas fell to the knee, some of them actually passing out in the snow, making the medic gasp and jump back slightly.

"Geez, I didn't think it'd be taken seriously..." The rest of the platoon stopped and looked at their exhausted allies, though they completely understood. It didn't take long until several medics and Chuunins gathered around them, quickly helping the injured and fainted ninja back into the village.

"Oh... Kushina-san..."

Kushina looked up when she heard a familiar voice, feeling herself being held by the elbow in a supporting move. "Yase..."

"I'm glad you came back." Yase smiled softly, before she guided Kushina back with the rest of them. The medic covered one of Kushina's cheeks with her hand, and Kushina refrained from flinching away when it stung, feeling the pain soothing away. Kushina allowed the professional medic to fix up some of the scratches as they walked, though Yase took several seconds to stare down at the leg that looked a lot more injured, shaking her head.

"I'll fix that up when we get back to the village..." Yase murmured.

Kushina nodded. Her gaze rolled upwards when the village gates grew closer and closer until they passed under it, entering the village. As the last person in the platoon stepped into Konoha, several ninja pulled the gigantic doors shut behind them, securing the village just as night was beginning to fall upon the land.

* * *

"Are you sure?" Minato asked what seemed to be the tenth time, his hand hovering over Kushina's shoulder. His face clearly had worry etched onto it, eyebrows raised in an angle that showed his fear for the kunoichi's health. Kushina sighed softly, wondering if she should bother answering the blond once more. When she had first gotten to the hospital, Minato was already there, and clearly he had heard about the battle and rushed immediately to the medical facility. Yase had to practically pry him off Kushina when Minato found that she was, indeed, safe.

Now, after Kushina had been properly treated and sent home, Minato was acutely aware that Kushina was still limping, and offered several times to carry her back to her apartment.

Kushina sighed for the eleventh time and raised one hand, patting Minato on the cheek a couple of times.

"It's okay." She said with a more stern voice. She turned her head and looked up at him, completely aware of the height difference between them now. He was now a whole head taller than her, and she had a feeling that he'd probably grow another inch or two before stopping.

Minato was still staring down at her, and Kushina couldn't tell, mostly because the streets were dark with little illumination, if he was disappointed or still worried. The corner of Kushina's mouth twitched before she sighed, giving in.

"Alright, fine..."

The blonds' face immediately lit up at this, and he stepped in front of her, lowering down slightly so that she could climb on. Kushina decided to jump on, making him take a step forward to secure his footing. He grinned over his shoulder and wrapped his arms around Kushina's legs, looking back to the front and starting to walk when he felt her arms snake around his neck.

Minato was grinning brightly to himself as Kushina buried her face into the back of his yellow hair. He couldn't exactly explain why he was so happy for just carrying her... Maybe because for a few minutes, he actually thought he had lost her... Minato's happy expression vanished for a second, before he pushed the thought out of his head and the smile returned.

"Kushina?"

The red kunoichi stirred a bit, as if she were dozing off for a while. She inhaled deeply and blinked sleepily, lifting her head out of Minato's hair. "Yes?"

"I love you." Minato grinned widely as he felt Kushina's heart beating against his back. Kushina buried her face in his hair again, flustered since the three words came out of nowhere.

"I love you too, Minato..." She whispered quietly, knowing that he would be able to hear her. Kushina could feel her cheeks reddening, still unaccustomed to when Minato picked random moments to tell her that he loved her.

The blond Jounin exhaled a happy sigh, all the fear he had in his heart earlier today gone. His blue eyes rolled upwards to stare up at the sky, only to find the stars obscured by the clouds. The snow had stopped falling, but Minato guessed that it would start falling again at one point during the night. Blue eyes returned down to the street, making sure that he didn't accidentally walk past Kushina's apartment. Maybe he should resume training with her, just to be on the safe side...

_Yeah... And Kakashi guys can watch for some experience too... Maybe they'll see something they're interested in... _Minato smiled a bit.

Minato stopped when he spotted the plants and flowers that Kushina's landlord grew, which always managed to catch his eye right when he was about to walk past the apartment building. There were always some paper lanterns out and lit by the small garden, creating a lighting just dim enough to create a beautiful scenery with the flowers in full bloom, despite the cold weather. Minato always took the time to stop and stare at the flowers, like he was doing now, before making his way up the stairs.

"..." Kushina stirred again and looked up, blinking slowly and beginning to realize where they were. "Oh... already...?"

Minato chuckled softly at this, knocking on the door a couple of times. "You should get some rest, Kushina... I'll stop by tomorrow in the morning, so we can formally introduce you to Kakashi guys..." He lowered slightly once the door opened, allowing Kushina to tiredly slide off.

Daylian rose a brow as the kunoichi blindly loped towards the door, though both Minato and Daylian had to grab her and guide her away from the doorframe she was about to walk into. Kushina yawned, completely unaware that she was about to walk into something. She looked over her shoulder and then waved tiredly at Minato.

"See ya tomorrow..." She mumbled. Minato only smiled at this, raising his own hand in a wave.

"Later, blondy." Daylian murmured goodbye before he turned to guide Kushina inside, closing the door. Minato caught a little bit of the conversation before he left.

"Geez, I'm not going to give you a bath. Wake up a little and clean yourself up."

"Okay..."

* * *

**Author(ess)'s notes:**

**Kiki:** Alright, guys. I still haven't decided how to do this, so I'll give you guys one of the completed chapters while I do figure out how to update...  
Another character appears! Though, some of you already know who he is since I've sent you the plot (which I've made quite a few adjustments to, by the way. ;P)

For those just tuning in, the story was put on indefinite hiatus/abandonment, but.. Well, I'm going to try my best to complete this fic. n.n'  
The next chapter isn't too action packed, but... I rather liked some parts of it. n.n'

As for when I'm going to update the next chapter... I think a week or two, depending on if I get more chapters done.  
Anyways. Thanks for you guys' patience. n.n  
And drop a review if you'd like- they really make my day. c':


	30. Peace

**Chapter XXX: Peace**

"Are you feeling better, Kushina?" Daylian asked with a yawn. He was standing in front of the sink, mindlessly washing some dishes that they had received as gifts from a mission a couple of years back. As he was beginning to wipe them dry, he heard Kushina stretching herself out in the only bed in their apartment. Kushina didn't bother responding right away, sitting up dazedly as she tried to wake up completely. She stared blankly at nothing for a while and then covered her mouth as she yawned once more. She slipped out of the bed, scratching her head before she slowly looked over at Daylian.

"... Are you... _washing_ the dishes?"

"I might as well, since you've been out for a while and they were getting dirty..." Daylian muttered as he carefully placed the dish with the rest of the clean ones. He picked up one of the washed cups and began drying it, turning slightly to look at Kushina. "Left over's for breakfast." He tossed his head in the direction of the table, where Kushina looked to find some rice and chicken she remembered eating a couple of nights ago. She sat down and slowly ate, still half asleep.

"Blondy will be here in a little while." Daylian commented as he took the plate when Kushina was done with it, turning around to start washing it since he was done with most of the other dishes anyway.

The small bundle of rice held between chopsticks stopped half way to Kushina's open mouth, before it was plopped in. "How do you know?" She asked him, no longer sounding drowsy after eating her meal.

"He stopped by ten minutes ago, but you were still asleep so he went to go pick up the students first." Daylian shrugged without looking back at her as he continued to clean the dish.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" Kushina frowned slightly, before tipping the bowl to her lips and scooping the rest of the rice into her mouth. Daylian's shoulders rose and fell in another shrug.

"He told me not to. You needed rest anyway. You were exhausted yesterday and it was only 8 when you went to sleep."

"..." Kushina could barely recall what happened last night after riding on Minato's back for a few minutes. She did remember taking a hot shower and then going straight to bed... Kushina shrugged and got up, walking behind her brother-by-law and balancing the chopsticks and bowl atop his head to humor herself. Daylian raised a brow but tipped his head forward, easily catching the stuff and beginning to wash them.

"Dress warm, it's snowing again."

"Yes mother." Kushina snorted slightly. Though she turned around and dug through a dresser for some of the warmer clothes she remembered buying with Sae. Kushina glimpsed at Daylian, whose back was still turned to her, and then quickly got dressed despite his presence, thinking about the last time she saw Sae. Her mind eventually drifted to Mikoto, and wondered how the Uchiha kunoichi was doing. Her child was born during the summer, she remembered, but the war was keeping everyone busy and apart... Kushina decided that she'd find time to visit Mikoto and Sae soon, and see how the newborn baby was doing.

"He's here, and so are the students." Daylian commented as he stacked the dishes and placed them in the cabinets. Kushina glanced over her shoulder, then quickly grabbed one of her scarves and wrapped it around her neck a couple of times.

"Bye, Da-nii." Kushina said as she slipped on her zori, before opening the door.

Minato had just taken the last step onto the second story, hands in his pockets and his head turned in the direction of the door when it opened. He smiled brightly at the sight of her coming out to greet him.

"Good morning." He greeted as the kunoichi approached him with a smile of her own. "Aren't you cold?" He asked with a light laugh, noting that she was only really wearing long-sleeves with a shirt over it, some pants as well as a scarf.

"More use to it than you, remember?" Kushina couldn't help but grin as she moved to walk down the stairs. "Besides, you can't move much if you're wearing so much layers of clothes..."

Minato shrugged a bit, finding his semi-thick jacket and Jounin attire rather comfortable. He tugged on his own scarf a bit, and then easily skipped the last couple of steps. Obito and Rin were waiting in the streets, talking to each other while Kakashi stood off on his own a few paces away.

"Hey, guys." Minato immediately took their attention, smiling as he placed a hand on Kushina's shoulder. "I'd like you guys to meet Kushina... She'll be training with us today."

Kushina turned her head to look at him, since she had no memory of Minato mentioning this to her before. Though her attention was brought back down to the Genin when the sole kunoichi of the group spoke to her.

"It's nice to finally meet you!" Rin smiled politely up at the older kunoichi. "Sensei talks about you all the time, so it's about time we were introduced, haha." She sincerely smiled as she recalled how the blond would occasionally babble on about his girlfriend, chuckling softly at the memories.

"Do not..." Minato mumbled, embarrassingly rubbing his nose a bit. "Anyways, that's Rin... Obito's the one with the goggles, and... Kakashi, get over here." Minato called when he noticed that Kakashi was still keeping his distance. He inwardly sighed at the Hatake, wishing that he'd warm up to them a little more.

"Just let him do what he wants already, sensei." Obito snorted with his arms folded. "He's not going to open up to us..."

Kushina tilted her head forward slightly at this. It was her first time looking at Kakashi, but somehow she sensed as though he went through some rough times... She could tell by the look in his onyx eyes, and remembered that for a while after Uzu's destruction, her expression was hardened into bitterness as well...

"Give him some time... Obito, was it?" Kushina looked down at the Uchiha. "He's been through a lot, from what I can tell... He'll get used to you guys eventually."

Obito raised a brow slightly, but shrugged and looked over at Rin with a smile that Kushina thought was honestly sincere; she could somehow tell that he _liked_ her. "I wonder when that'll be, right, Rin?"

The brown-haired kunoichi nodded a couple of times, her eyes flickering constantly to Kakashi.

"Anyways, let's head on over to the training grounds, guys..." Minato jutted his chin towards the direction of the training grounds, though Kakashi didn't have to look once as he started making his way to the destination, hands in his pockets as he walked a few paces ahead of the group.

* * *

Her heart was slamming into her rib cages, and it made her more conscious than she already was. Her brown-red eyes flickered around as she desperately searched for him. Of course, he couldn't be spotted. It made her fidgety, especially since she was just standing in the middle of the snow-covered training grounds. She often spotted Minato's students for a second as she scanned the area; they only stood by the three wood stumps and observed the spar, taking in whatever they could. Though, right now, all they were really taking in was Kushina looking around, feet parted, and her hands placed in a seal with Suiton water dancing around her.

Kushina wondered if the students could hear her heart beating. Her fingers drummed slightly from where they were placed in the seal, and she bit her lip lightly. It was nerve-wracking enough that Minato was taking so long to attack, and that she hadn't sparred with him in so long, but to have these students watch too...? She'd look like a fool if she messed up in front of them, especially with Kakashi's cynical eyes boring into her.

The kunoichi heard a light sound and immediately tightened her hand sign. The water dancing around her lashed out at breakneck speed, and she caught a glimpse of Minato dodging the water-based whip, although it was just a brief image. Kushina's head turned slightly when she heard another sound; metal zipping through the frosty air at an unimaginable speed to any regular civilian. Kushina blindly made a couple of hand signs, and a Suiton barrier formed up behind her. The barrage of shuriken slammed into the wall before it could slash at Kushina's back. The water barrier absorbed the metal stars, being crumpled like paper by the dangerous pressure of the water.

While the shuriken were being rendered useless, Kushina instantly released her hand sign, the water splashing to the ground with the crumpled metal, and parried the kunai that was being thrust at her, using her left forearm to knock Minato's arm away. Quickly using her free hand, she grabbed him under the arm and bit her lip. Her feet slid as she flung him overhead, but she managed to keep her footing in the snow and water that pooled at her feet.

Minato smirked lightly as he was flung, but easily flipped mid air and regained his footing after Kushina had thrown him. He turned around and faced her, brushing some dust off his jacket. "Good job!"

"..." Kushina sighed in relief and her shoulders slumped, worn out from being tense for so long. She tilted her head slightly when Minato placed a hand on her shoulder, and she looked up at him.

"Heyyy! How'd you do that?" Obito was soon standing next to them, staring at Kushina with his eyes slightly wide in curiosity. "That whole crushing the shuriken thing with just the water... I mean, that'd be so useful... They wouldn't be able to pick it up again and use it against you..." Obito said as he thought about it for a second. He grinned as if he thought about using something like that in battle.

"The chakra nature of water is pressure."

Minato's eyes were drawn to Kakashi, who slowly walked towards them, snow crunching beneath his feel softly. Rin was walking along side of him and she couldn't help but smile when Kakashi seemed to have opened up a little.

"Water chakra has great defensive skills, but you need the nature in order to utilize it..."

"That's right, Kakashi." Minato grinned down at the student. "All of us have different chakra natures... Though actually using it in combat, or defense in Kushina's case, can take several months to master..."

"Whaaaaat." Obito's mouth opened widely as he whined. The way he slouched forward showed his disappointment. "Months? Are you serious?"

"Yeah... It probably would've taken me a year, if Jiraiya hadn't given me a few tips..." Kushina admitted with an embarrassed grin, raising her hand to rub the back of her head.

"A yearrrr?" Obito only continued to whine.

Minato laughed warily at Obito, placing a hand on the Uchiha's head as a physical sign to stop complaining. "You're not advanced enough to even start thinking about chakra natures, Obito. Right now we just have to make sure you guys can properly mold and control your chakra... Though, if you see any jutsus you'd like to try out, keep it in mind and we can practice once you guys are through with basic chakra control." At the last sentence, he looked at all three of the students. Obito nodded eagerly, Rin only smiled and nodded once, while Kakashi was looking off somewhere else, as if deep in thought...

"Prepare for a boring a tedious training, guys." Minato grinned. He ignored Obito's groan as he assessed the surrounding trees and wondered to himself if the trees at this time of year would be strong enough for training. He half-turned and looked at his students, pointing over at the trees.

"They're a little gloomy and shorter in the winter, but you guys are young enough to be able to run up them no problem."

"... What?" Obito broke the silence. Kakashi rolled his eyes, though he was standing behind Rin so she couldn't see him. He moved forward at this, walking past the group in an almost bored manner. His hands were placed into a seal as he walked, as if he didn't want to waste time. He parted his hands and slipped them in his pockets, walking up the tree like he was doing it half his life.

"... What the fu-"

"Watch your mouth." Minato warned.

"...dge... I said fudge." Obito finished, before riveting his eyes back to Kakashi. "How do we do that, sensei?"

"Come." Minato patted Obito on the shoulder as he lead the group forward towards the tree, just as Kakashi nearly fell off the trunk. He managed to catch himself, but still landed rather awkwardly on his feet. Obito immediately clasped his mouth with both hands as he sputtered, trying his best not to release the laugh that was going to erupt. His shoulders shook in mirth, as if it were the funniest thing he ever saw.

Minato lightly hit him on the back of the head, and Obito glared up at him in silent protest.

"Kakashi, are you alright?" The blond teacher was already looking at Kakashi when Obito glared at him.

"I'm fine, sensei." Kakashi brushed some snow off his shoulder and turned around, arms immediately folding.

"..." Minato sighed softly. "I know you're rather advanced, Kakashi... but you still need to be careful. Your chakra molding is good for someone of your age, but you still don't quite have the hang of it..." The Jounin looked down at his students. "Now, I want you guys to mold your chakra... and _run_ up the tree." With the emphasis on the word, he glimpsed at Kakashi. "It'll give you more momentum, plus a better feel of it... Once you get better, you can start walking around."

"Sensei?" Obito had a crooked frown as he raised his hand above his head, a habit he picked up from the Academy. "How do you do that, exactly? Mold chakra, I mean..."

"Well... you see, Obito..."

Minato's voice faded into the background as Kushina watched Kakashi from where she stood a pace away from the blond. The silver-haired Genin glimpsed over his shoulder, as if catching the tips Minato laid out for Obito, before he looked up the tree again. Kushina couldn't tell what he was thinking, obviously thanks to the mask concealing half his face. She watched as Kakashi placed his hands in a seal once more, closing his eyes to focus. He took a couple of steps back and then ran up the tree this time. Kushina's head tilted back slightly as she followed Kakashi, watching him to make sure he wouldn't fall. Due to the slippery surface, Kakashi lost his footing and reached for a branch that looked much too brittle to support his weight.

Kushina was right, and the branch snapped when Kakashi's full weight held onto it. Kushina shot around the other three and grabbed him by the back of his clothes before he could crash onto the snow-covered ground. The kunoichi only then realized that she was Kakashi's height about three years ago, and how much she had grown... Kushina inwardly smirked, but made sure that on the outside she wasn't so that Kakashi wouldn't take it the wrong way.

"..." Kakashi struggled in silence and Kushina placed him on the ground. On the small area of skin below his eyes, Kushina could see a very light red. "... Thanks." He muttered, as if thanking her was hard. Kushina grinned lightly.

"You should really take it slow, Kakashi... Just rushing through won't get you anywhere..."

"... I already know how to do this." Kakashi muttered as he folded his arm, obviously avoiding her gaze.

"It's just slippery, I agree..." Kushina reached out and slid her fingers across the bark. "But the more you practice, the less you'll waste your chakra, and the less you'll spend time molding it to use the right amount for a jutsu."

Kakashi only looked at her, and Kushina awkwardly laughed a bit. "Oh, right... Sorry, I'm not your sensei..."

"It's alright, Kushina." Minato smiled a bit as he watched Obito run up the tree. "Obito, come back down here. You're using too much chakra." The blond called when he saw all the splintering footsteps in the bark of the tree. Obito growled in annoyance and pushed off the tree, squatting as he landed back down by Minato's side.

"Rin, how come you're so good at this?" Obito groaned when he saw that he was obviously bested by the kunoichi, who stood at the top of the tree while carefully distributing her weight so that the branches wouldn't snap.

"She's a medic, she has to be." Minato couldn't help but grin when he saw that Rin made it up in one go. He felt some pride swelling up in his chest for some reason, and wondered to himself if Jiraiya felt like this back when Minato accomplished something in his genin years. If he was getting this prideful feeling from just seeing Rin already master a basic chakra molding exercise, then he couldn't imagine what he'd feel like when they started mastering advanced jutsus.

* * *

Kushina parted ways with the team as it started to grow dark, feeling rather accomplished. She felt a lot closer to Rin, whom she had just met this morning as a simple student of Minato's. In fact, Kushina was really impressed with Rin's medical knowledge. Before Kushina and the team parted ways for the day, Kushina promised Rin that she would introduce her to Sae and Mikoto.

The red-haired kunoichi grinned at Rin. She had a feeling they would be getting along quite well...

Now that Kushina thought about it, she felt _a lot_ more mature today. This was probably due to the fact that she was the one teaching, not the one being taught. And because Kushina realized that she had grown quite a bit, standing at least two feet over the top of Rin's head. She grinned and remembered she was that short about three years earlier when she first arrived in Konoha.

As she saw her dimly-lit apartment building several meters away, a chilly wind blew in, stinging Kushina's exposed body parts, namely her cheeks and hands. She exhaled a large cloud of heat that immediately vanished into the night, completely forgotten, and leaned forward into a light jog to keep her blood flowing and heart pumping against the winter night. She easily skipped a couple of steps up the stairs despite them being layered with slippery ice and snow. Kushina paused for a second at the top of the steps and turned to look down. She turned and made a couple of seals, blowing some fire above the slick cement and melting the potentially dangerous ice, before she turned and approached her apartment door.

She turned the door knob, feeling that it was unlocked, and opened the door.

"I'm back-" She was just about to scrape the snow off her zori when she looked up, and stumbled backwards in shock, nearly tripping over the slight leverage of the doorframe. The black wolf only looked up from where he was casually laying on his flank, an ear folding to the side in a confused motion. Kushina panted a bit as she held onto the wooden frame and door knob for support, shaking her head as she stepped back inside, closing the door behind her.

"What the hell was that about?" Daylian growled as he lowered his head back onto the floor, which had a cool touch from the winter that he enjoyed feeling against his fur.

"..." Kushina scraped off her zori with a shake of her head. "I'd forgotten about it completely, but..." She stifled a slight yawn while she was pulling her scarf off, hanging it over the backrest of the dining chair. "At the battle yesterday I was face to face with some... cat..." Kushina frowned when she couldn't remember the proper name for the feline, her gaze rolling upwards to think. _Lion? No..._

"... What the hell?" Was all Daylian could really get out of his maw during the silence between them. "So did I remind you of that cat or something? Thanks..." He muttered.

"No..." Kushina continued to frown a bit. "Umm... It wasn't a tiger... But it was massive." The kunoichi held her hand horizontally at about stomach level. "It was this tall at the top of its head, and it was black... though it had some weird fur coloring, kinda like how you sort of have purple." Kushina pointed out. Daylian looked at his tail for a second. Although it wasn't visible currently, in bright light there were indeed some almost unseeable tints of violet that he often spotted on his tail fur.

"Except the cats' was like... blue-ish... teal?" Kushina rubbed her chin as she tried to remember the details. "I remember it had like teal eyes or something... and a stripe on its nose." As if to show more visual detail, Kushina rubbed the bridge of her nose with her index finger.

As Kushina carried on describing the feline, Daylian slowly became more and more alert. He had sat up and settled onto his haunches when the kunoichi described the feline she encountered, and his hackles rose slightly as pieces of the detail puzzle came together in a picture he was familiar with...

"And the weirdest part? It said my name." Kushina finished after all the describing that Daylian only partially listened to. The wolf tensed at her conclusion, but he quickly raised a leg and feigned scratching at his neck.

"Are you sure, 'Shina?" Daylian snorted in disbelief. "Maybe you dreamt about it... I mean, you did fall asleep for about 12 hours after the battle. That's more than enough time to have vivid dreams."

"..." Kushina looked down at the wolf. "No. I know what I saw and heard... Do you have any ideas on who he is?"

"... A stalker?" In the brief moment of not replying, Daylian had thought about telling her, but quickly decided against it. Kushina's face twisted in mock horror.

"That's terrible, I have a stalker that lives in Iwa but somehow manages to find time to follow me in the middle of a war." Kushina rolled her eyes. As she was having her sarcastic moment, she had gathered some night clothes into her arms and walked towards the bathroom. "Get real, Da-nii... Anyways, I'm cold... I hope you took a shower, 'cuz I'm going to use up the hot water." Kushina grinned before closing the only door to the small bathroom.

"..." Daylian only watched as the kunoichi went to take her shower, before he frowned and lowered his head. His violet eyes grew blank as he plunged straight into deep thoughts...

* * *

Kushina stared up at the gates of the estate and instantly thought _old fashioned_. The fences were wooden and the gates were sliding, and above it was a board that held a familiar red and white fan-shaped symbol of the clan's emblem. Kushina had, like she said, decided to visit Sae and Mikoto. Though, she was thoroughly disappointed when she didn't find either at the hospital, and instead pointed in the direction of the Uchiha estate, where the two often spent their days looking after the infant.

"Shall we go in, Kushina-san?" Rin asked with her arms folded behind her, as she tilted her head to look up at the older kunoichi. Kushina found the medic-in-training at the hospital and learned that Minato was off training Obito and Kakashi more chakra molding exercise. And since Rin was already passed that phase, she decided to see what she could learn at the hospital. Kushina inwardly laughed nervously. She took advantage of Rin's presence and dragged her to where they were now; telling the genin that she should meet the two Kushina was looking for as well as the baby one of them gave birth to. At the very word baby, Rin immediately agreed, beaming.

"Yeah... Let's go..." Kushina murmured. Although Kushina wouldn't admit it to Rin (or maybe not _now_, perhaps more in the future when she was a little more mature), she was still very much scared of Uchiha's, excluding Mikoto of course, due to the _incident_. The former Uzu kunoichi felt a shiver run down her spine at the thought. She shook her head. _No, it was just that guy, and he was probably drunk..._ _Not all Uchiha's ar-_

"What business do you have here?"

Kushina immediately jumped at the demand that came from the Uchiha guard whom appeared before the two kunoichis. Rin looked up at Kushina in confusion at this, before looking back to the clan member nervously. Kushina saw this and quickly tried to regain her composure.

"U-uh... We're here to visit Mikoto... But if we're not welcome..." Kushina trailed off, taking a half step back. She nearly jumped out of her skin when another Uchiha appeared, but she calmed immediately when she saw that it was female.

"Hey, calm down... They're just here to visit Fugaku's new child." The black-haired kunoichi playfully punched her clan mate in the arm, who in response flinched and muttered at her.

"Very well..." The first Uchiha muttered to the visitors as he stepped aside.

"Mikoto lives on the fourth house on the left when you turn down this street... Sorry about him." The kunoichi smiled as she winked, moving out of their way. Rin only smiled back politely after replying with a soft "It's no problem."

Kushina was rubbing her sleeve covered arm at this, walking through the estate. She tried to remain calm, knowing that Rin was walking next to her and that she'd be meeting her friends soon enough.

"I think this is it." Rin murmured, pausing to breathe warm puffs of air into her hands for a couple of seconds. The two halted in front of a sliding door with the Uchiha crest on it, but the two looked at each other after staring at the door without much progress. "... Ahaha..."

"Here goes nothing... If it's the wrong house, I'm making sure we _both_ look stupid, got it?" Kushina threatened playfully as she raised her fist to shoulder level. Rin only nodded a couple of times, before Kushina tapped on the wooden door frame with her knuckles. It rattled under the light hits of her knuckles, and the two waited for several seconds.

It slid open ten seconds later, and Kushina breathed a sigh of relief.

Sae's eyebrows flew up when she spotted her friend, before a bright smile stretched across her face and she grabbed Kushina by the arm.

"Kushina-chan! My gosh, it's been so long! Come in, come in!" Sae cried with joy as she pulled the redhead into the home. Kushina quickly grabbed Rin by her shirt so that she wouldn't be left out in the snow as well.

"Mikoto-channn! You'll never guess who's here!"

"I already know, Sae..." Mikoto's more calm and mature voice was obviously filled with amusement as she spoke from the other room. Sae rubbed the back of her head, before her crystal-blue eyes fell upon Rin, her eyes instantly curious.

"Huh? Who's this?"

"Oh." Kushina looked over at Rin, who was carefully taking her zori off before entering the home. "She's Rin... Minato's student."

"... Oh yeah!" Sae had thought for a second. "Mikoto mentioned that there's an Uchiha under his tutelage too... I remember now." The blond Yamanaka turned to the younger kunoichi with a smile. "Nice to meet you, I'm Yamanaka Inosae, but just call me Sae for short."

"It's nice to meet you, Sae." Rin smiled back with equal politeness, lowering into a slight bow like Sae had.

"Enough formalities, come in!" Sae grinned and spun around, walking through the open door frame and into the living room, where she spun around Fugaku to avoid running into him. He only dismissed her, seeing that he saw her almost every single day. Though when he spotted the two visitors, he looked up from the newspaper he was reading with a brow raised.

"...?"

"Um... Hello..." Kushina mumbled awkwardly. Fugaku only shrugged, and continued walking past them, heading for another room to let the girls have their time.

Mikoto was seated on a cushion, arms resting on the polished table, as she looked up at her two guests with her smile warm and welcoming. She chuckled and motioned with her hand for the two to make themselves comfortable as Sae sat on a cushion next to her.

"This is certainly a nice surprise... It's been quite some time hasn't it, Kushina?" Mikoto rested her head on her palm, her onyx gaze flickering to Rin. "Oh my, aren't you cute... Your name was... Rin, I think I heard? I'm Uchiha Mikoto..."

Rin immediately blushed at the compliment and nodded sheepishly. "Hai... Nice to meet you..."

Mikoto chuckled softly and looked back at Kushina. "She reminds me a bit of you when you were younger... Except she's not as tomboyish."

Kushina rubbed the back of her neck, after removing the scarf and folding it on her lap, warily. "Is that supposed to be a compliment or an insult?"

Mikoto couldn't help but blink a bit when the kunoichi spoke. "Oh my... Your voice certainly changed since we last met... You sound much more mature." She smiled. "And I've noticed that you've been growing your hair out, like Sae and I suggested..." The Uchiha kunoichi chuckled softly. "It looks nice."

Kushina blinked and twisted slightly to look at where her hair stopped growing, which was approximately at the middle of her back. She blinked. When did that happen?

"You know, I think it's grown a little darker." Sae pointed out after observing the kunoichi's hair with amusement. "I remember it used to be a pretty bright red... It's mellowed down a couple of shades."

The redhead blinked at this, and proceeded to take the strand of hair that was clipped to the side so that it would stay out of her face. She stared at the long strands of hair for several seconds, trying to recall the color it previously was, as Sae had stated. Now that she thought about it, it did seem a lot less bright...

Mikoto sighed happily. "Kushina... You've matured so much since I first met you... It's nice to know that my prediction was right; you have blossomed into a beautiful flower." Mikoto winked as she stuck the tip of her tongue out of her mouth playfully. While Kushina was blushing and mumbled incoherent words, the Uchiha took advantage and drew Rin into the conversation with ease.

"I remember she used to have hair about as short as yours, Rin-chan..."

Rin was looking around the living room with some interest until she heard her name. She jumped a bit and looked back at the older women, chocolate brown eyes blinking. She looked over at Kushina, who only returned her gaze silently, face still red and mouth trying not to smile at the barrage of compliments she was receiving. Rin couldn't help but smile, looking back at Mikoto.

"It's pretty hard to picture her with hair shorter than it is now... When I met her I always thought she was that pretty."

"Not you too." Kushina mumbled almost inaudibly as she covered her face with both hands, flustered. Mikoto laughed softly.

"She was pretty back then, but she's growing to be beautiful now... We can probably thank Namikaze-san for that."

Kushina peered through her fingers at the mention of Minato, just in time to catch Mikoto winking at her. She immediately closed the opening she made with her fingers, keeping her face buried in her hands. Rin laughed warmly.

"Hmmm... How long were you and sensei together, anyway?" Rin smiled as she took advantage of the freedom of her teacher not being around, wanting to ask questions that she had been dying to ask the kunoichi the moment Kushina was introduced to the team.

"Um... Two years, at the beginning of last month... December." Kushina's voice was muffled, but the three kunoichi could clearly hear. Sae squealed a bit, which admittedly startled Rin slightly.

"Gosh, I can't believe it's already been two years for you two! And you're still going strong, huh?" Sae grinned.

"Yeah." Kushina only decided to answer to satisfy Sae, who in response squealed like she predicted. Kushina groaned softly at this.

"You were tomboyish before, Kushina-san?" Rin asked. Kushina nodded a couple of times, parting her index and middle finger to look at Rin.

"Really? I would've never known..."

"..." Kushina only fell into silence, before sighing. "Why is it that whenever I hang out with you guys, the topic is somehow always on me?"

Sae grinned. "Because you need a confidence boost, and we know how to give you some without you realizing." At the last three words, Sae got playfully elbowed by Mikoto.

Kushina's eyes widened from where she hid them behind her hands. She could feel the blood pooling in her cheeks and making them appear red, and it was beginning to grow painful. She shook her head, grumbling a bit.

"We came over to see your kid, Mikoto... Not talk about me..."

Mikoto blinked before she laughed and got to her feet. "That's right... We got carried away... I'll bring him here, hold on." With that, the Uchiha kunoichi quietly walked off into another room. Kushina slowly lowered her hands back onto her lap, but avoided the other gazes of the other two. She had to look up at Sae, though, since in her peripherals she noticed an expression change in the blond. Kushina didn't like the look of the smug grin. _What is she planning...?_

"Mikoto!" Sae's grin brightened even more when the Uchiha returned with an infant held carefully in her arms. "Let Kushina hold him first!"

_Oh._ Kushina had no idea why she got paranoid like that, but the thought was quickly overlooked as Mikoto kneeled down behind Kushina.

"Alright, you need to hold your arms out like... Sae, show her how."

"... Like this...?"

"There you go... Careful now..."

"Ah, Kushina-san... You need to hold his head up a little more."

"Hold his head a little lower, Kushina-chan... Just so that it's tilted a little."

After about a couple of minutes of trying to get it right, Kushina was finally holding the infant Uchiha properly. Kushina's head was tilted back in an exaggerated motion to show that she was already exhausted. She immediately looked down when the infant squirmed. Itachi had yawned by the time she looked at him, before blinking drowsily and looking up at her curiously. The Uchiha infant smiled innocently and reached up with his short arms in an attempt to reach for some of Kushina's hair that was hovering just beyond his reach. Kushina couldn't stop herself from smiling as he managed to reach her hair, inspecting the lock with rounded onyx eyes. Her cheeks were growing sore as she continued to smile down at the infant, watching him wave her lock of hair playfully.

"Isn't this good experience, Kushina-chan? Now you'll know how to hold your own child-"

"Huh?" Kushina jumped at this, and leaned away from Sae when she realized how close the blond was. Itachi gurgled in amusement at this, his smile brightening tenfold.

"Aww, aren't you just an adorable young man?" Sae's attention was immediately turned to Itachi, her cheeks tinted red as she carefully ticked the infant, who in return laughed and squirmed in Kushina's arms.

"What the hell do you mean?" Kushina asked as she tried to lean away from Sae, holding out the infant so that Sae could continue babying him. The blond looked up at her with an 'innocent' expression.

"Well, you're going to have a kid with Namikaze-kun soon, right?" Sae asked with a rather nonchalant tone. Kushina immediately felt her face painting itself red, her mouth dropping open.

"Hai, that's enough teasing for today, Sae-chan." Mikoto decided to intervene by chopping Sae on the head with her hand in a light but firm order to stop. Kushina's shoulders slumped in relief, but she knew her face was still red from all the blushing.

Kushina inwardly thanked Mikoto, not only for relieving the kunoichi by taking her son out of Kushina's arms, but by being an adult and knowing when to stop things from going too far. Mikoto shifted on the balls of her feet, pivoting so that she swung around and faced Rin, a smile back on her face.

"Here you go, Rin-chan... I trust you to keep him safe from Sae-chan."

"What? Mikoto-channn, that's harsh..." Sae whined when she heard this, slouching forward with her shoulders falling in dismay. Mikoto sighed softly as she got up to her feet once Itachi was safely transferred to Rin's arms.

"You need to stop teasing Kushina-chan... especially with something serious like childbirth." Mikoto wagged a finger at Sae warningly. "... I'm going to go make us all some tea. So we can actually catch up this time, not tease Kushina-chan or baby over Itachi-kun."

* * *

**Author(ess)'s Notes:  
Kiki:** I rather like this chapter. xD

Guys. The last couple of Naruto chapters to me have been like... sex. So much Minato and Kushina, I'm practically dying. xD I can die a happy fan, yus.  
I called a couple of more stuff. Like Uzu being destroyed (_yes_), Minato using his Hiraishin seals/kunais to get to locations, rather than just in battle.. And a few others but, I'm just starting to sound smug, aren't I? -shot- xD

Oh. Also, I discovered a small plot hole. Just something really minor. I changed the name of 'Shina's brother's fiancé, and changed that they were only engaged before Uzu was destroyed. So Kushina and Day aren't actual siblings-by-law, but they like to refer to each other as that anyway.  
I made a family tree if anyone wants to get a look at it, just so that they don't get confused. xD'

I'm still trying to figure out how to update this thing, but it looks to be almost bi-weekly? I'm not too sure. .-. I don't think I can stick to a weekly schedule like those suicidal mangaka's in Jump... x.x'  
Anyways. See you guys next update. xD


	31. Kansha

**Chapter XXXI: Kansha**

_Chop chop chop chop._

Kushina had to admit that she liked the sound of the knife coming in contact with the cutting board as she sliced the onions into thin pieces. Her eyes swiftly darted to her right and skimmed the words in the small book, before she carefully placed the knife aside and looked through some cabinets for a good sized pan, somewhat bowl-shaped. Kushina found one after a minute of searching and took a couple of steps to approach the sink, washing the pan to get rid of any bits of dust that were clinging to it. She easily flicked the water drops into the sink and took a side step to stand in front of the stove, placing the pan ontop it while she leaned to her right to get a look at the book again.

_Dashi, shoyu, mirin, and... sugar. _Kushina repeated the four ingredients several times in her head as she spun on her heels, moving towards the refridgerator and pulling it open. She scanned the shelves and pulled out the bottled of mirin and shoyu, then eventually found the broth hidden in the back and carefully removed it. Straightening herself, she used her foot to close the door and made her way back to the counter next to the stove. The kunoichi placed the three liquid-based ingredients down and eventually found a small sack of sugar sitting nearby, pulling it close before she scanned the directions. Mouthing the words, Kushina grabbed the dashi bottle by the neck and twisted the cap off, pouring the indicated amount of soup broth into the pan, then using her other hand to twist the stove heat to medium. She allowed the soup stock to simmer for a bit before adding the shoyu and mirin in their required quantities.

Kushina stared intently at the liquid-filled pan, as if waiting for it to explode, before she sighed softly in relief and moved back to the cutting board where she had prepared the onion slices. Picking up the wooden board and knife, she tilted it over the pan and scraped the onion slices into the soup, using the dull end of the blade to get all the pieces off the board. Kushina peered inside to see how it looked, before she turned to gather up the pork cutlets she had sliced before the onions.

Balancing the small plate of tonkatsu, Kushina took a pair of saibashi with her right hand and carefully placed the pork cutlets into the broth and onion filled pan. She frowned when a couple of the tonkatsu plopped in, sighing. _Still not use to these ridiculously long cooking chopsticks..._ She thought to herself as she made sure to be careful with the last couple. Placing down the bamboo cooking chopsticks, Kushina turned a dial on the stove to low, then quickly made her way to the refridgerator once more.

_Eggs..._ The red-haired kunoichi brought out four eggs, two in each hand, and closed the door with her hip this time, quickly returning to the counter and placing the eggs down. Before they could roll off the counter and make a mess, Kushina reached up into the cabinet and pulled out a glass bowl. She caught one of the eggs that threatened to splatter itself, frowning.

_This part's always tricky..._ Kushina thought warily as she timidly tapped the egg on the edge of the bowl, pulling it open and letting the yolk spill into the bowl. Sighing, she picked out a couple of shell bits, then discarded the shell to the side for her to clean up later. She repeated the process with the next three eggs, although she didn't have to pick out egg shells on the last egg, making her grin a bit in accomplishment. Quickly skimming the directions, Kushina sighed and picked up the saibashi once more, proceeding to swiftly beat the four egg yolks. Once the eggs were thoroughly beat, Kushina put aside the chopsticks and turned the dial on the stove to the point where the broth was boiling. The kunoichi couldn't help but stare, before she remembered the directions and began to drizzle the beaten eggs over the tonkatsu and onion slices. Once the last of the eggs were added to the pan, Kushina looked around for the lid that went with the pan. Finding it, she swapped it with the glass bowl and covered the pan, turning the heat off.

"Almost done..." She murmured to herself as she began a search for three rice bowls.

She discovered a few bowls and plucked them from the shelves, admiring the paintwork on the polished bowls before moving to the sink to wash them briefly. Flicking them dry, Kushina walked over to a part of the counter where a small rice cooker sat, flipping the lid open and leaning back when a large cloud of steam floated out. Kushina distributed the rice into the bowls rather evenly, licking off a couple of pieces that managed to stray onto her fingers.

A grin slowly started to stretch across her features when she realized how close she was to finishing. She lined up the rice-filled bowls next to the pan and then took off the lid. Observing the food inside, she silently hoped it was edible, and sniffed the aroma that drifted upwards. Her eyebrows raised in surprise.

_Doesn't smell like poison. That's a plus. _She thought as she transferred the tonkatsu and onion slices into the bowl, ontop the rice. Repeating it for the next two bowls, Kushina paused and looked at the broth, deciding that it would be a waste. The kunoichi pulled open several drawers in search of a ladle, finding a suitable one, washed it, and drizzled the food with the broth. She placed the ladle in the pan for later cleaning.

Placing her hands on her hip, she stared at her accomplishment with a grin. _Looks and smells pretty edible. Just need them to test it... _

She was about to reach out to grab one, then realized that there were no utensils, and dug through the drawers again. Just like everything else, she ran the three pairs of chopsticks under water to clean them, and stuck them into the bowls. 'Dusting' off her hands, Kushina grinned and grabbed the bowls, being careful not to spill the contents, as she made her way across the kitchen, sliding the door open with her foot.

"Ooh, she's done!" Sae grinned widely up at her red-haired friend from where she sat at the table. Her crystal-blue gaze followed the bowl as Kushina carefully set it down before her, staring at it. "Ohh... Katsudon? How thoughtful, especially when it's all cold outside!" The blond Yamanaka beamed as she picked up the chopsticks that stuck out of the bowl.

"Did you find everything you needed?" Mikoto asked as a bowl was placed before her, her onyx gaze looking up at Kushina.

"Yup!" Kushina replied before placing Rin's bowl before her.

"It looks delicious, Kushina-san." The brown haired genin commented with a smile.

"It is!"

Immediately their attentions were turned towards the blond, who already downing one of the tonkatsu slices with her eyes wide with astonishment. Rin and Mikoto both blinked at Sae's reaction, then quickly picked up their chopsticks that Kushina prepared.

"Itadakimasu." They murmured in unison before beginning to eat their own meal. Kushina watched from where she sat on a cushion next to Sae, watching their reactions as if half expecting them to spit it out after a while. Kushina's head tilted forward when Mikoto looked at her with a bright smile.

"We've taught you well!" She stuck her tongue out playfully when she saw Kushina blush a little. The red-haired kunoichi modestly shook her head, rubbing the back of her neck as she did.

"It's not really that good, is it? I mean... geez it was my first time cooking alone..." Kushina mumbled, though on the inside she was overjoyed at the fact that she actually made a meal on her own... and that it tasted good. She suppressed the grin that was slowly trying to creep its way to the surface.

"Well you've come a long way in just a couple of weeks." Mikoto grinned after she swallowed a mouthful of rice. "So tell you what. Since you managed to cook such a delicious meal for us without any of our help, I'll give you a couple of hand-me-down cook books, alright? I'm sure Namikaze-kun and your brother will _love_ the meals you're going to cook for them." The Uchiha kunoichi gave a wink, which immediately made Kushina's grin bubble to the surface and her face color itself red.

"I'm sure sensei would love having someone cook food for him.." Rin said nonchalantly, but she smiled a bit. Kushina immediately took note of how familiar the smile was, and made sure to keep Sae from giving Rin any funny ideas.

Kushina rubbed the back of her neck, only continuing to grin as her heart swelled with pride.

"Is it really that delicious?"

"Yes!" Sae cried, beaming before she ate the rest of the katsudon, leaning back with a contented sigh and rubbing her warm stomach. "Ahhh... You even put my mother's katsudon to shame.."

"Eh?"

Mikoto chuckled at Kushina's reaction. "Perhaps I should hire Kushina-chan as my personal chef... Mm, then I'd be able to relax with Itachi-kun." The Uchiha mother smiled warmly, resting her elbows on the table and cupping her face with both her hands.

"..." Kushina rubbed her cheeks warily, but stuck her tongue out with a slight frown. "I am _not_ going to become your maid. I only really asked for you guys to teach me how to cook because I'm tired of eating left overs and cheap food..."

"... And you wanted to cook for Namikaze-kun." Sae wagged her index finger as she finished the sentence in a singsong voice. She smirked when she saw Kushina's face redden, then transformed her smirk into a light grin. "I hit the nail on the head... But really, you're so thoughtful, Kushina-chan." Sae pointed out as she stretched her arms above her head. "Wanting to give them proper nourishment... You're beginning to develope maternal instincts."

"... Ha?" Kushina blinked at what Sae was saying. "What're you...?"

"It's pretty natural for you to start feeling like that at this age." Sae smiled. "Wanting to take care of others."

"I've always felt like that..." Kushina mumbled while her fingers fiddled with eachother on her lap.

"But it's stronger than before, right?"

"..." Kushina fell silent as she pondered what Sae had just said.

When she first arrived in Konoha, she only thought of it as a second home... a replacement. Then she met Minato, Sae, Mikoto... And she even got reunited with her brother-by-law. Granted, there were some bad times, but she made it through. Before she knew it, several years had passed, and Minato even became a teacher, in which one of his students were sitting across from her this very moment. Kushina chuckled softly.

"Yeah... Without even realizing it..." Kushina murmured, partially to herself as she smiled down at her hands. "I fell in love with the village... The people, the protection, it's ways... And now that I think about it... I've been learning mostly defensive jutsus just to protect everyone the best I can... It's the least I can do to repay the village for all its done for me..."

She looked up at the three other kunoichis with a light grin. "I'm glad I met you guys..."

"Ohhh... Kushina-channn..." Sae wrapped her arms around Kushina's shoulders, pressing her head against the others'. "Don't cry."

"Huh...?" Kushina only then realized the tear that had rolled down her cheek, and blinked when a couple of more tears dripped. "O-oh... That's weird..." She mumbled, slowly frowning when she found she couldn't keep the tears from overflowing. "I don't even know why I'm crying..."

"..." Sae fell silent as she continued to hug her red haired friend. Her light-crystal eyes grew serious, although Kushina couldn't see it due to the angle Sae was at. "It's because the war, Kushina... It's yanking out hundreds of lives... And it's going against what you're doing for the village, it's scaring you... You're terrified... and you're probably even blaming yourself everytime you're in battle and someone dies..."

Kushina's breathing hitched almost inaudibly, before she slowly nodded, using the back of her hand to wipe away the tears. She shuddered a bit as she tried to suppress the salty drops that kept falling from her eyes.

"But it's not your fault, Kushina." Sae released the hug, but grabbed Kushina by the shoulders. The red-haired kunoichi looked up to see Sae looking at her straight in the eye, with the most serious expression she had even seen on the Yamanaka. "Always remember that. It will never be your fault if someone dies. War brings battles, and battles evidentally lead to injury or death..." Sae slowly looked down. "... Just do what you can, Kushina. Defend others so that they can live to see another beautiful sunset in Konoha. But never blame yourself if they don't get a chance to... And most of all," Sae looked back up at Kushina. "Live everyday like it's your last. Love the village and all that it's offered. Protect like Konoha's very existance rides on your shoulders."

"..." Kushina slowly lowered her own gaze, the last of her tears threatening to pool over and slide down her cheeks. Wiping them away, she smiled slowly. "Thank you, Sae..." She sighed and continually wiped her eyes until she no longer felt them tearful. When Sae released her shoulders, Kushina looked up and found Mikoto's arm draped around Rin's shoulders in a comforting motion. Kushina frowned for a split second, then immediately put on a apologetic grin in an attempt to dispel the gloomy aura.

"I'm sorry... I just totally ruined the good mood we had earlier."

"It's alright, Kushina-san." Rin smiled after wiping away some water marks a tear left on her cheek. "I know exactly how you feel..."

"We all do." Mikoto murmured as she reassuringly rubbed Rin's shoulder, smiling softly at her friends. "Come on, girls... It's getting late, and I can't have you all returning home with tears in your eyes." Mikoto pulled her arm off Rin's shoulder and slowly got to her feet, smiling to brighten the aura. "Kushina-chan, I'll go get those recipe books I told you about... Sae-chan, Rin-chan, you two suggest a dish Kushina-chan should make for Namikaze-kun..." Winking, the Uchiha kunoichi turned to disappear into the kitchen.

Sae laughed a bit, which made Kushina jump but slowly smile. Anyone who saw Sae now wouldn't be able to imagine her in the middle of a dark conversation, as the Yamanaka named off a couple of dishes, raising her fingers to count how much she had suggested.

"Not ramen, because even the fanciest ones are put to shame by Ichiraku's." The blond kunoichi's gaze was rolled up to the ceiling as she thought. "Maybe curry. Yeah, curry sounds good this time of year."

"Curry..." Kushina repeated softly with a couple of blinks.

"It's also really good with katsu..." Rin pointed out.

"That'd be quite a big meal." Sae commented as she returned her gaze back downwards to look at the youngest kunoichi. Rin nodded in response, then laughed as she recalled a memory.

"Yes... I remember one time my mother made that, and we couldn't finish it all, even with my father with us. It's a really filling dish."

"Perfect." Kushina murmured, to herself, and making the other two occupants in the room turn to look at her. She looked up when she felt Sae and Rin's gazes fall upon her, and she realized that she spoke out loud. "Uh... My brother has a big stomach. I'm sure he can probably polish off more than half of those... if I can manage to make it.."

"I'm pretty sure curry is in one of these books..."

Their focus soon shifted to Mikoto as she entered the room slowly, skimming through one book while the other was tucked under her arm as she searched. Deeming her search a slight waste of time, Mikoto shrugged and snapped the book shut with one hand, handing both of the recipe books to Kushina with a bright smile.

"Next time we see you and Namikaze-kun, he better be in love with your cooking as well!"

* * *

His feet parted for proper footing in the slow-melting snow. His shoulders squared. His right arm was held out, fingers curled slightly in a visible tensing movement. Blue eyes slowly narrowed in concentration. A small, shriveled dead leaf rested on his palm, before it twitched and slowly began swirling in the air roughly an inch above his palm.

_Focus..._ Minato urged himself silently, just as the leaf's rotation was more noticeable. He weaved more and more chakra into the rotation, and eventually he could see the chakra sphere forming. The leaf flew away when the rotation hit a certain speed, forgotten as it landed several feet away ontop the layered snow. Minato ignored the pain that was beginning to flare up in his arm. _Right on time._ He thought for a second.

Just when he was about to solidify the jutsu, he felt chakra flares behind him and his concentration broke. Uncontrolled, the once-steady rotation of the chakra exploded into powerful gusts of wind. Snow was whipped up into the air and swirled with the chakra that raged out of control, forcing Minato to extend his right arm as far as he could while his left arm shielded his eyes. As the last wisps of wind died down, Minato lowered his arm in disappointment. He quickly fix his hair, especially the strands that framed his face that flew all around during the crazy whirlwind.

Kakashi's eyes were wide slightly, as if impressed by the jutsu Minato had nearly completed. Jiraiya stood next to the genin, making Kakashi look much younger due to the dramatic height difference between them. The white-haired Sennin rubbed his head, a rather guilty expression on his face.

"S... Sorry there, Minato..." Jiraiya apologized, already realizing that their appearance startled the blond out of concentration. All of Minato's disappointment vanished as he grinned at his teacher and student.

"Nah... I was just focusing a little too hard, sensei... But, uh..." Minato rubbed his right forearm absentmindedly as he looked down at Kakashi. "I'm surprised to see you two here.. Together, I mean."

"Y-ep, I've been talking to the squirt." Jiraiya roughly patted Kakashi on the head, making the genin growl up at him in annoyance. "Making sure he's staying in line, y'know? A little less weight off your shoulders..."

Minato blinked at what his sensei was saying. Now that he thought about it, Kakashi did seem a little less hostile since he fought with Obito in autumn... Minato couldn't help but grin, a chuckle escaping him. "Thanks, sensei..."

"Don't mention it... Now... How long have you been working on that jutsu?"

"... I, uh... It's been on and off... I think I started some two years ago? But since I've been training Kakashi guys so I don't get much opportunities to work on it..." Minato admitted after he thought about it for a bit. It was only then he realized how much time had been put into it... And there were two parts to this jutsu, too... Minato's shoulders fell slightly, and Jiraiya noticed immediately.

"Hey, it looked like you were about to get it... Then uh, we showed up..." Jiraiya scratched his head. He could see that Minato was still disappointed, being so close to getting to another checkpoint in the creation of this jutsu, only to get interrupted. He felt guilty, honestly he did. Jiraiya sighed. "You wanna try again?"

"Um..." Minato continued to massage his forearm as he trailed off, quietly wondering if his arm would be able to handle one more try.

"What were you trying to do anyway, sensei?" Kakashi spoke up when the blond trailed off into silence. Both blue and black gazes shifted their focus to Kakashi at this.

"I'm trying to make a jutsu that doesn't require tedious hand signs..." Minato started. "Only a complete control of chakra... But er...Right now, it's putting a strain on my arm..."

Jiraiya frowned and his eyes narrowed slightly. "Really?" He questioned as he looked down at Minato's arm, finally finding out why the blond was massaging it. He could see that Minato's motions were slowing, as if his arm was feeling less pained. Jiraiya sighed and then his gaze slid back up to his former student. "You should get that looked at..."

Modestly, Minato laughed and shook his head no. "It's alright... It was a lot worse before, but now it only feels like pulling a muscle slightly." He explained, using both arms in hand motions as if trying to prove to the two of them that he was fine. Kakashi only looked at him with the same, stoic expression, while Jiraiya showed that he was skeptical by raising a brow.

"... Think you can try again?"

Minato thought for a while. _Guess it wouldn't hurt that much... I can always visit the hospital if it does get worse..._ He grinned at Jiraiya and dipped his head into two curt nods. Ignoring the slight twinge of pain in his forearm, he turned around to scan the background, then vanished in a swift movement. A second later he returned in front of Kakashi and Jiraiya, another dead leaf placed in the middle of his palm to track the flow of his chakra. As Minato concentrated, the leaf began its steady, midair rotation.

The blond grimaced slightly when the pain his arm flared up again, almost making him flinch out of his concentration. He pushed himself despite the rising pain as the leaf began to spin faster and faster. Squeezing an eye shut, Minato started to grit his teeth when his arm was feeling unbearably strained. Trying to ignore the pain, Minato nearly completed the sphere, but jumped when a large hand wrapped its fingers around his forearm.

Jiraiya only stood his ground against the lashing whirlwind, standing in the position that seemed to be shielding Minato from most of the gales. The white-haired Sennin opened his eyes once he no longer felt his hair and wind whipping at his face. He turned and looked over his shoulder, releasing Minato's arm, which the blond promptly cradled and knead.

Minato's blue gaze avoided Jiraiya's for the time being. After being his student for how long, he knew what was coming- Jiraiya had a perfectly good reason for stopping him and Minato knew it.

"That's enough, Minato." Jiraiya started sternly, in a tone that had been used on his student countless times before in the past. "I'm not going to sit around and watch you cripple your own arm-"

"And since I'm your sensei, you have to listen." Minato finished with Jiraiya in unison, already knowing the lecture. Despite the aching pain, Minato grinned his trademark grin up at the white haired Sennin. "I know, sensei."

"... It's weird.. Seeing my sensei being treated like a genin..." Kakashi commented from a few long strides behind Jiraiya. If the genin was feeling awkward, he definitely didn't show it... Minato rubbed the back of his neck with the arm that wasn't pulsating with pain, grinning in embarrassment, then playfully hit his sensei on the arm.

"I know, sensei! Hahaha! You should know better than to treat me like a genin in front of my student!"

Jiraiya sputtered a bit at this, then folded his arms and threw out his lower lip a little. "Then stop acting like one! You should know when to stop." He growled in his self defense, wringing Minato's neck with his arm and digging his knuckles into the top of the blond's head. Minato laughed as he struggled playfully to get out of the headlock.

"Kakashi, see how bad this guy is at being a sensei? If you want a real sensei, just ditch this guy and train with me."

"What?" Minato ceased his struggling to look up at the white-haired Sennin, still slouched forward since he was trapped in a headlock. The move strained his neck slightly, so he shook his head.

"I think I'll pass on that, Jiraiya-sama. After seeing how many times you stopped to try and court women on the way here, sensei is much more preferrable now." Kakashi commented with a fold of his arms, a brow raising slightly and becoming hidden beneath his hitai-ate.

"See!" Minato grinned up at his sensei. "Now let go!"

"Fine." Jiraiya rolled his eyes and released the blond, whom immediately straightened to crane his neck.

"Did you guys come here to train together?" Minato asked as he tilted his head to the right, feeling the left side of his neck being stretched.

"Nah, I just lecture him every now and then when I walk him here." Jiraiya rolled his eyes a second time, before his black gaze fell upon the silver-haired genin that approached them. "Isn't that right?"

"You can't even lecture properly; you keep stopping mid sentence and going off to oggle at women." Kakashi only narrowed his eyes cynically up at the much taller man. Shaking his head with a slight roll of his eyes, he shifted his attention back to his blond sensei. "May we train, sensei?"

"Mmm..." Minato massaged his forearm when he finished stretching his neck. "How about tomorrow, Kakashi? We need to work on your teamwork skills and quite frankly, it's not possible without Rin and Obito here."

"..." Kakashi huffed in response and then folded his arms. "Fine..." He muttered.

"And speaking of your teammates, would you mind telling them about training tomorrow? We'll meet here at noon."

"... Not at all." Kakashi muttered warily as he avoided Minato's gaze. "Walked all the way here only to be told to work with the idiot..."

"Hey, you need to realize how important teamwork is." Both Minato and Jiraiya said in unison, causing the two to look at eachother. Kakashi scoffed a bit at this and raised a brow.

"Don't tell me you two rehersed that."

"No, not at all." Student and teacher spoke together once more, making Jiraiya playfully slap Minato upside the head. The blond laughed and rubbed the spot that Jiraiya struck. clearly amused that they were on the same wavelength.

"..." Kakashi rolled his eyes slightly, then turned around so that he faced the exit of the training grounds. "I'll go tell them then... sensei." The genin muttered before he bent his knees, jumping into a shunshin shortly after.

Standing in the snow-covered grounds, the two slowly turned their heads to look at one another. Unconsciously they mirrored the others' movements, grins stretching across their faces as they turned. Jiraiya's grin turned into a smirk, a brow raising slightly before he drew a kunai, twirling it by the ring.

"For old time's sake?"

"Although it's unfair that I just turned down training Kakashi... You bet."

The two vanished in a flurry of kicked-up snow and the clashing sparks of weapons.

* * *

"Oiii, blondy, blondy."

Minato paused in the middle of the half-empty streets, brushing some of the snow from his hair as he turned around to respond to his 'nickname'. Through the falling veil of snowflakes, Minato's blue eyes spotted a familiar figure approaching with his black hair speckled white from snow. Daylian only ignored this as he stopped a couple of paces in front of the blond, exhaling a rather large cloud of warm air before he spoke.

"Boy, 'm I glad I found you...," Daylian started, making Minato raise a brow in slight curiosity. "Though, it honestly wasn't that hard. Your hair's a beacon of sunlight even in the snow."

"Oh shut up." Minato deadpanned at what the older ninja said as he turned around to continue down the dull street. "I swear, someday I'm going to dye your hair pink or something while you're sleeping."

"That doesn't sound creepy at all." Daylian growled. He moved forward to catch up to the blond, walking along side him. "Sneaking into the apartment just to pull a prank on me... _in my sleep_?"

"..." Minato inwardly smirked, but on the outside he kept a straight face. "Well it wouldn't be my first time sneaking in during the night hours."

"... Wait, what?" Daylian halted dead in his tracks, and Minato stopped as well to turn slightly and see his reaction. The older ninja's mouth was hanging open slightly, though there was a disgusted expression more than a surprised one. Satisfied upon seeing the reaction, the blond slowly smiled before laughing.

"You actually fell for that? You should know Kushina better than that!" Minato only continued to grin despite Daylian's fist closing around the collar of his jacket.

"Hey, I know her quite well, _thank you_," Daylian growled as he narrowed his violet eyes at the blond Jounin. "It's just _you_ I don't trust when it comes to _that_ kind of stuff."

Minato chuckled and pried himself out of Daylian's grip, though it took a little bit of effort. "Haha, don't worry, she isn't ready for that yet." He murmured as he moved past the older ninja, mostly to hide his reddening face as he grinned. Minato couldn't deny to himself that he definitely had _thoughts_ about it, like any other teenager his age, and he definitely had more temptations to visit her, and _only_ visit, nothing more, during his sleepless nights. The blond chuckled inwardly. _Only when she's ready._

"... Hell-o!"

"Huh?" Minato blinked out of his thoughts and turned his head to look at Daylian, whom had an annoyed expression when he realized that Minato hadn't heard a single word he said.

"I _said_, what do you mean _yet_?"

"Exactly what it means, Daylian-san." Minato sighed and returned to avoiding the man's violet gaze. "Can we move on to another topic? ... Oh, right. Why were you looking for me?"

"Oh." Daylian scratched his head as the conversation came back around to his original intention. "Yeah... 'Shina's went shopping and came back with a bunch of stuff, then she kicked me out, told me to look for you, and come back at around 6."

Minato stopped at this and looked at Daylian, tilting his head forward slightly in curiosity. "Is that so? I guess I'll be eating dinner at your guys' then.."

"But I didn't spot a single bentou or instant ramen cup anywhere, blondy." Daylian's expression was suddenly very grim as he placed a hand on the blond's shoulder. "There were even some kitchen appliances. _Kitchen appliances_!" He repeated with emphasis.

"So she's cooking." Minato's brows rose in surprise, before he grinned. _I didn't know she could cook... I'm sure it'll taste delicious._ "That sounds great- I'm glad she invited me."

_... Oh, right. This idiot didn't grow up in Uzu. Crap, I wonder if I can still bail out of this... I don't want to be poisoned! I got lucky last time when she attempted to cook something back in-_ Daylian's violet gaze flickered up when he saw the blond move back down the streets, opposite of his original destination.

"H.. Hey, what're you-?"

"It's almost 6. We'll get there if we walk quickly." Minato smiled over his shoulder, before returning his gaze to the front as he slipped his cold hands into his pockets. Despite the snow making the village quiet and difficult to see, Minato knew his way around, especially to Kushina's apartment. He heard the snow crunch beneath Daylian's feet as he jogged to catch up.

"Hey, wait up..." Daylian mumbled warily. Minato only discarded the reaction as a train of thoughts floated around in his head.

_It's been a long time since anyone's cooked for me... I think it's been about five years or so, even... I wonder what she's going to make? What _can _she make? ... How long has she been cooking? Perhaps she just recently learned, I don't recall her cooking anything during our time together... Hmm... Did she start cooking just for me?_ Minato blinked at the last question and then slowly beamed at the thought.

Daylian, on the other hand, had his own train of thoughts rolling. _Shit, but what if I don't even show up? What'll Kushina say...? Or do? She can be the violent type sometimes... _Daylian glimpsed over at Minato, who was only smiling to himself. _I'll wait for blondy to eat it first, and any signs of poison, I'll high tail it out of there, Kushina's feelings hurt or not._

The little garden and paper lamps were growing visible step by step, the lights glowing dimly against the falling snow. Minato found himself growing more excited as the apartment drew closer and closer, and he chuckled at his childishness. Still, he couldn't help but skip a couple of steps on his way up the stairs. Through the cold air, he could smell a distinct aroma that made his stomach grumble, and he looked back at Daylian for a couple of seconds.

"... It.. smells good." Daylian sounded surprised, and both of his brows were raised. The two stared at the door for what seemed like a couple of minutes, occasionally exchanging glances. Minato himself was wondering if Kushina had finished the dinner preparation, while Daylian was debating on actually staying or fleeing on the spot. Sighing, Daylian pulled his hands out of his pockets and pushed the blond forward. Minato nearly stumbled but quickly regained his balance, scowling slightly at Daylian before turning his blue eyes to the door. Raising his hand and balling it into a fist, Minato rapped on the door three time with his knuckles.

The door opened shortly after, and Minato leaned back in surprise when steam practically flooded out from the apartment. Kushina poked her head through the doorframe and instantly grinned at the two.

"You guys just made it in time! Come in, come in!" Kushina invited in excitement, reaching out and grabbing Minato by the sleeve of his jacket then pulling him inside. Minato stumbled a bit, quickly scraping his zori off and stepping inside so that the doorway wouldn't be congested. As he removed his jacket and scarf, the blond's blue gaze were drawn to the small dining table, with three sets of plates and chopsticks set out neatly. His eyes eventually wandered over to where the small kitchen stove, where a pot was being heated by small blue flames. He took in the aroma of the warm meal and blinked several times when he recognized the scent.

"Curry...?"

"That's right..." Kushina smiled almost shyly after she dragged Daylian inside, and Minato couldn't help but think to himself how cute she looked when she smiled like that. "Sit down, it'll be ready in a sec."

Minato nodded, and sat on the side of the table that was set for two, assuming that he was to sit next to Kushina. Daylian trudged around the tabletop, seating himself on the otherside and shaking his head. Kushina quickly took both of their plates and carried them back to the counter, opening up the rice cooker and leaning back as a thick cloud of steam wafted out. Using the plastic utensil, she quickly scooped rice onto the plate, being sure to spread it out. She lightly closed the rice cooker and picked up a pair of cooking chopsticks to put some chicken katsu on top of the rice, before moving to open the pot of curry. Carefully, Kushina took the ladle that was hanging on the inside of the pot and scooped up some of the curry, being sure to scoop up some meat, potatoes and carrots as she did. When she placed the ladle back inside, Kushina stopped to examine the meal she prepared and grinned to herself.

_The first meal I made for Minato!_

She excitedly turned around and hurried to the table to place the filled plate in front of him, leaning back to see his reaction while beaming.

Both Minato and Daylian stared down at the curry with wide eyes, and Kushina was figuring out what they were thinking exactly. Minato slowly started grinning, then took hold of the spoon that was set out for him.

"It smells great, Kushina! It's been a long time since I've had curry," Minato beamed when he looked up and found Kushina looking pleased with herself. Chuckling softly, he looked down and scooped up a spoonfull of curry-covered rice and transferred it to his mouth. "Itadakimasu!"

Minato blinked twice in surprise and smiled as he swallowed the mouthful. He could easily feel the warm food travelling down to his stomach, and rest there almost snugly. It felt nice, especially during the snowy season in Konoha. Showing no hesitation, the dug into the food, surprised when he found chicken katsu pieces.

"Ah..." He was about to ask Kushina about it, but stopped when he saw that she was preparing Daylian's dish. The blond shrugged lightly and continued to eat, finding himself in slight awe when the curry and katsu went well together. Minato grinned to himself. _She made this all for me? ... Us._ He corrected himself when he stole a glimpse at the black haired man. Daylian himself looked rather hungry, eagerly scarfing the food when the filled plate was set before him.

"How does it taste, guys?" Kushina questioned, making Minato's blue gaze flicker back to her.

"It's delicious! And I never knew chicken katsu could go so well with curry.. It's a nice touch, Kushina!"

Kushina couldn't help but blink at Minato's opinion, and paused from where she was filling up her own plate to look over at him. She found herself grinning when she saw his rather enthusiastic smile, and turned around to hide her reddening cheeks.

"Oh, I'm sure it's not that great... I'm not a professional chef or anything.." She replied modestly, though she was grinning widely at the thought of her lover clearly enjoying the food she prepared.

"Can I have seconds?" Daylian called, and Kushina nearly slipped on her way back to the table.

_He's still hungry after all that? ... Holy hell, he polished off that serving like it was nothing!_ Kushina was staring in awe at Daylian's emptied plate as she placed her own down on the table next to Minato. Rolling her eyes slightly, Kushina only nodded and picked up his plate.

"... With more katsu and meat, please." The older ninja added once her back was turned. Kushina heard a light chuckle emanating from Minato and then sighed softly. _I'm glad I prepared a lot..._

As they ate dinner, Daylian stood up another time to go get more helpings, while Minato only went back once for a small serving himself. Kushina was just slowly eating her meal, taking in all their praises and blushing as they flattered her. Both Minato and Kushina were surprised when Daylian got up for a third serving, and he only shrugged off their questions. After the third plateful, Daylian stretched and slowly pushed himself up to his feet again.

"What, a fourth one?" Kushina couldn't help but deadpan at the very thought.

"Nah... I'm full now. I'm gonna take a warm bath and then go to sleep... I'm pretty drowsy after all that." Daylian snorted and sluggishly made his way to the bathroom. "That was surprisingly good, 'Shina. Thanks for the meal."

"No problem-"

"And don't do anything funny while I'm in here." Daylian called with a second snort, before closing the bathroom door behind him. Kushina frowned slightly at his assumptions, though she blinked and looked down when Minato covered her hand with his.

"It really was great, Kushina." Minato was smiling when she looked back up at him. "I loved it... You're quite the chef."

"..." Kushina only rubbed her nose with her free hand, as if trying to hide the grin that was threatening to break to the surface. "Not really... I just.. followed the instructions, y'know?" She flusteredly scratched her cheek lightly with her index finger, still trying to keep herself from beaming.

Minato chuckled as if he could clearly see this, and patted her hand before getting up. "I'll help clean the dishes..."

"No, just leave them to soak in the sink... I'll make Da-nii wash 'em tomorrow." Kushina waved her hand at this, before gathering some silverware and plates. Minato only glimpsed at her, then shrugged lightly and carried the rest that Kushina couldn't carry, following her to the small counter and placing them under the running water.

"Are you sure? I feel pretty bad... Making him wash all the dishes..."

"Yeah, it's fine." Kushina smiled up at him as she took the plate from his grasp. "Relax! Enjoy the rest of your birthday night!"

"... Huh?" Minato blinked as her words registered slowly. Kushina paused after she placed another plate in the water, deadpanning before looking up at him.

"... You forgot?"

"... Ahaha..." Minato weakly laughed and rubbed the back of his neck. "I.. though the 25th was another couple of weeks from now... But now the reason for the dinner makes a lot more sense..." He admitted with another weak laugh. Kushina pouted slightly before folding her arms, feigning a huff and striding across the apartment. Minato immediately panicked and followed her to the bed as she sat down on it.

"Ahh, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! You know I loved the meal!" He waved his hands at this, sitting down on the edge of the bed next to her. Kushina inwardly smirked when he lost his usual calmer demeanor, but continued to feign irritation by keeping her arms folded and her gaze adverted. Using her peripherals, she watched as Minato panicked and spout compliments with apologies weaved into them. After a while, Kushina's facade began to break as she smiled and then laughed loudly, making Minato jump in surprise.

"You're so gullible sometimes! Hahaha!"

"..." Minato pouted a little when he heard that she had fooled him, cheeks tinted a light red with embarassment. Kushina saw this expression and continued to beam at him.

"That's such a cute expre-" Before Kushina could even finish the sentence, she found her arms pinned to her sides as Minato tightly hugged her, resting his cheek on her shoulder. He mumbled softly after exhaling, moving his head in a sort of nuzzling motion.

"Don't do that... I really thought you were mad..."

Kushina's eyes widened when she immediately detected the despondency in his voice, turning to look at him. Her eyes softened and she tilted her head to rest it atop of his, feeling him calm slightly as he exhaled once more. Keeping his arms around her, Minato raised his head, pecking her on the cheek and pressing his forehead against her temple.

"Kushina..." He breathed near her ear, making Kushina shiver slightly at how fervent he sounded. Kushina's cheeks colored and then she shyly smiled. She raised her hand to place it atop one of Minato's arms that still held her in an embrace, closing her eyes and leaning against him.

"I love you, Kushina..." Minato whispered, his embrace tightening slightly as if to emphasize his words. Kushina continued to smile, sighing happily as she rubbed his sleeved arm with her thumb.

"I love you too, Minato... Happy birthday."

* * *

**Author(ess)'s Notes:  
Kiki: **Okay, so! I wasn't going to update this for another few days but then I remembered that there was a birthday in the story. xP So I thought, "Oh, how appropriate it would be for me to update it on my birthday as well. c:" -shot- xD  
Mmhmm, that's right folks. It's already the 21st for the rest of you in the world, but it's still the 20 to me. xD Happy birthday to meee. 17, to anyone who's wondering. xP

Anyways, returning back to the fic, it's Minato's birthday (in the story!). For those who don't know, it falls on January 25th, so you guys now have a much clearer idea of the time of year it is in the story. He just turned 18 in the fic, for those who are wondering. C:

Gaiz. I don't know about you, but.. I absolutely loved the part with Minato and Daylian. x'P I had way too much fun typing that part up.  
Hmm. The next update might take a little while longer. I like to try and stay two chapters head of the update, and I've only finished the next one. xP' I'm still working on chapter 33. But, if I bunker down I'll try and get it done quickly for you guys. x3

See ya next time. c:


	32. Moonlight Talk

**Chapter XXXII: Moonlight Talk**

Spring was approaching. Much, much earlier than back in Iwa, he noted. The snow was already melted here, save a couple of scattered piles that were half water, and patches of grass were even already growing from the ground. Leaves were slowly beginning to bud from the branches, filtering some of the warm sunlight that shined downwards. The grass felt pleasant under his hardened paw pads, and he stopped to stare down at a small flower that had managed to bloom earlier than the rest.

_It's still snowing back in Iwa... _He thought to himself, before carefully stepping over the small, yellow flower. _... It's so much warmer here... If I had come here instead of Iwa... _He paused his thoughts for a second. _Would I be happier?_

Shisu shook his head. _No. I can't think like that. I need to focus..._ He thought, raising his paws up and then forward into another leisure trot. The panther made his way through the forest, teal eyes slowly sliding up from the ground to look up at the looming village walls in the distance. Rounded ears flicked forward, before returning to their original position when he didn't hear anyone nearby. After taking another several steps, Shisu paused and lowered to sit on his haunches, his thick tail curling over his front, teal paws. He tilted his head back, his chest puffing out naturally as he did, and gazed up at the large walls.

_Now... How to do this...

* * *

_

"Obito, quit slacking and control your chakra properly!" Minato called from where he stood on the sidelines, arms folded across his chest. He returned to wearing his usual Jounin attire and flak vest as soon as the snow had been cleaned away, enjoying the less restricting movements his usual clothes gave him. His blue eyes assessed his Uchiha student, who grumbled in disappointment at his words. Obito slumped forward and looked over at Minato, frowning a bit as the blond spoke again. "Now, try again!"

"Hai, hai." Obito grumbled like a child being nagged by an elder, straightening his back and raising his hands to chest level as he flickered through the hand seals again. He parted his feet after finishing the sequence, curling his fingers in front of his mouth and exhaling the large breath he was holding. As if his hand was a sort of filter, a large fireball shot out at the other end.

Kushina looked up from where she was resting on her feet, before she flicked her arm skywards and a large wall of water shielded her from the Katon. There was a hiss in the air as steam floated up from where the Katon and Suiton clashed, making Kushina look up at it in surprise. Minato dipped his head into a couple of nods.

"Very good... You're not wasting as much chakra as before, Obito." Minato commented from where he stood.

"Really?" Obito looked down at his hands for a few seconds. "I can't tell..."

"When you learn more jutsus that require precise chakra control, you will." Minato smiled a bit, unsure if Obito was just being modest.

"But when's that gonna be? We're only doing boring basic stuff!" Obito started his whining, and the blond could see it coming from a mile away. Though, Minato had to admit he could definitely relate to the Uchiha, having been eager to learn new jutsus back when he was under Jiraiya's tutelage... The surfacing memories made him chuckle, and he was brought back to reality a couple of seconds later. Warmly, he smiled over at his student.

"Soon enough, Obito." Minato promised. And he sincerely meant it; Minato was just as eager to see how far his students would go, and the very thought sent a bit of adrenaline coursing through his veins. Trying to ignore this sudden rush of energy, the blond Jounin drummed his fingers against his arm.

"Hey, Kakashi!" He called over his shoulder, managing to get a glimpse of the silver-haired student with his peripherals. "It's your turn. Let's see how your chakra control is now." Though, Minato had high expectations for Kakashi's chakra control. The genius boy just kept speeding through all the chakra-molding exercises Minato threw at them (though Kakashi usually fell just short of Rin in that category), and it was also the reason for the arguments between him and Obito. Though, Minato realized, it had toned down a bit. At least enough for them to try and work together as a team.

Kakashi wasted no time as he walked to stand where Obito once was, his hands turning into blurs as he sped through the needed seals, placing his hand by his mouth and blowing a massive fireball. Kakashi's hastiness surprised Minato, and he quickly looked over at Kushina in concern, feet parted and adrenaline still coursing through him as he prepared for any scenario.

Kushina was clearly caught off guard at this, quickly leaning back in time to avoid the flames that licked at her. She clapped her hands together, and a second later the water from the nearby stream jumped to life, swiftly raining down on the large Katon to extinguish it. All before Kushina _nearly_ landed on her rear. She looked up from where she was suspended in the air, her heels dug in and her arm above her head as Minato held onto it to keep her from hitting the ground.

"Thanks." Kushina smiled up at him, making the blond's heart skip a beat. He pulled her back up right, before sighing and looking over at Kakashi.

"Hey, calm down... What was that all about?" Minato asked, the disappointment evident in his voice. Kakashi stood a couple of yards away, arms folding as he narrowed his eyes slightly. Minato clearly noticed this and the corner of his mouth twitched, sensing a sudden rebellion.

"We're beyond this point, sensei." Kakashi growled, proving that Minato was indeed correct, but the blond just kept silent. "We're just wasting time here. It's about time we're taught a lot more jutsus."

"... I hate to say it, sensei, but Kakashi's right." Obito piped up when the other teammate's words made sense. "We've been doing the same thing, over and over and over." He droned as he repeated the word, as if to emphasis how boring and tedious all the exercises were.

Kushina's eye twitched in irritation at their sudden attitude and rebellion, but she blinked when she realized that Minato's arm was trembling. _What's wrong with him...?_ She slowly looked up and just caught him hiding a light smirk. His face was suddenly serious, but that didn't keep his arm from shivering with adrenaline.

Minato shook his head, inwardly smirking at his students. He raised his gaze and eyed the two, releasing Kushina's arm and taking a couple of steps forward. Obito visibly flinched and even backed up a step, parting his feet as if prepared to run. Minato could see that Kakashi grew slightly tense too, as if expecting a lecture of some sort.

"... You guys want to do something different? Fine. Come at me. Prove to me that you guys are more than ready to jump out of basics." Minato dared, his facial expression and tone dead serious. Silence fell upon the training grounds, only interrupted by the occasional spring breeze and the sound of grass being crushed beneath shifting feet. Obito's eyes were wide and he was stunned into speechlessness, while Kakashi only narrowed his eyes, as if contemplating on taking up Minato's dare.

Minato partially hoped that they would actually take his challenge. He still had adrenaline and he wanted to show them that they weren't quite ready to jump into advanced ninjutsu. The blond heard movement behind him as Kushina took a step towards him.

"What are you saying?" She whispered, and Minato could tell by her voice that she was also surprised. "They're genin, and you're... way too advanced." She kept glimpsing over at the two younger ninjas, and back at Minato as if mentally willing him to just talk them into continuing basics.

"They're growing boys- stubborn ones at that." Minato turned his head to look down at her. "I was like them too... The only way sensei got it through my thick skull was to show me how much more weaker I was compared to him." He turned to look back at his students. Obito seemed to be borderlining determination and fear, while Kakashi looked like he was fully prepared to attack. Minato exhaled a throaty chuckle.

He raised his right hand, curling his pinky and ring finger. Keeping his middle and pointer fingers pressed together, he made the common hand motion for them to come, all while he smirked as if to egg them on. Kakashi ran forward at this, making Obito jump back a good foot or two. Kushina also took a couple of steps backwards when she saw Kakashi charging, eyes wide as Minato only stood there. Kakashi vanished from where he was charging, appearing midair behind Minato and spinning into a kick.

At the last, split-second, the blond easily caught Kakashi by the ankle and flung him. As Kakashi was twisting to land properly, Obito was charging forward with his hands making a flurry of hand signs. Minato observed this, feet parting slightly. As Obito shot the massive fireball, Kakashi landed a couple of feet behind the Uchiha, lowered as he squinted against the intense light the flames were emitting.

"Did we get him...?" Obito asked as he slowly halted the jutsus, feeling rather exhausted from expending such a large amount of chakra. The grass and earth were charred black from the flames, but the blond was nowhere in sight.

"Not even close."

The two boys spun around at the voice, to find Minato standing only a pace behind them with his arms folded as if he were bored. This posture seemed to bait Obito, as he growled and charged at Minato again, drawing a kunai this time. Minato also mentally noted this, frowning as he easily fended off Obito's taijutsu attacks, being careful as to avoid the sharpened knife. The blond managed to snap the weapon out of Obito's hand and flipped him, making the Uchiha writh on his back in pain. Minato inwardly winced when he realized how much force he had used on the younger boy, seeing that the wind was clearly knocked out of Obito by the way he gasped raggedly for breath.

Minato's sharpened blue gaze flickered to his peripheral when he heard the sound of clothes rustling, and quickly released Obito's arm to spin around on his heels. He raised his arms and crossed them to defend himself from Kakashi's axe kick, twisting his arms the second he felt the ankle slam into his forearms. He swiftly grabbed Kakashi, swinging into another rotation to throw the young ninja.

Kakashi's irritation was evident as he twisted to land properly on his feet, skidding back a couple of inches and kicking two small dust trails. His black gaze flitted down to his writhing teammate on the ground behind Minato, and he inwardly growled how useless Obito was. He looked back over at Minato, only to find that the blond was no longer there.

_He's fast! _Kakashi half turned to look around, catching a blur in his peripheral and ducking beneath the barrage of shuriken. A second later, he found his arms snatched and twisted behind his back, making him grimace at this. _He's just toying with us... _Kakashi's struggling ceased after a few seconds, and he lowered his gaze. _If we were actual opponents... _

Minato turned his head when he heard Obito getting up to his feet. The young Uchiha was slouching as he continued to gulp air, before he looked up with a glare and charged at the blond, though his motions were noticeably slothlike, as if he were exhausted. Minato shifted his grip on Kakashi, as if preparing for whatever Obito was going to throw at him. Though he relaxed a bit when he saw that Kushina was intervening, halting Obito in his tracks by grabbing one of his arms.

The redhaired kunoichi only shook her head down at Obito. "That's enough..." She murmured softly, sensing his weariness. She ruffled his hair, ridding it of some dust. It was obvious how tired Obito was, by the way he slumped forward and nearly fell over if it weren't for Kushina's grip on his arm. She definitely felt sorry for the two students, and quietly helped him sit down on the grass.

_... We'd be dead._ Kakashi finished the thought, stumbling forward a step as Minato released his arms. He only rubbed his slightly-strained shoulder to avoid his teacher's gaze, quietly thinking to himself.

Minato folded his arms, glancing to and fro between his two students. He could definintely feel their disappointed aura, and shook his head. He knew exactly how they felt, having gone through an utter defeat against his sensei back when he was their age. It was... discouraging, to the say the least. But, he hoped that their defeat left them with the small flame of determination to grow stronger. He chuckled to himself, recalling the feeling. At first, he was completely depressed, but as Jiraiya lectured him... he recalled getting an odd feeling in his chest, a strong will to train harder and become stronger. It overwhelmed him; the sudden drive to go beyond what he was capable and take in all the lessons from Jiraiya he could. Thinking back... It was probably one of the reasons why Minato was where he was today.

He only hoped that their battle left those two with the same fire Jiraiya left with him.

* * *

She raised her arms above her head in a stretch, inhaling and then exhaling a yawn as she did so. As she walked back to her apartment, she quietly relished the warmer weather that fell upon the village. It felt.. pleasant, especially after the winter, and no skirmishes to be sent out to for the past several weeks. Kushina sighed softly. If the war wasn't going on, she would be able to enjoy the moment more thoroughly... But, she would make due with the current peaceful times.

Kushina looked down at the small plastic bag she held in her right hand, and sighed when she remembered that she couldn't cook anything tonight. To save money, Daylian made her go out and buy bentous for the next couple of meal times. A second sigh rolled off her tongue, and she pursed her lips in disappointment; She wanted another excuse to have Minato come join them for dinner again...

Though, she couldn't complain; She _had_ been training with Minato and his team a few times a week, although, with the little rebellion incident three days ago, Kushina felt that Minato should train them on his own for now. Especially while the two boys were riled up and training practically from dawn to dusk, or to the brink of exhaustion.

Kushina chuckled warily, turning left and climbing up the steps to the apartment. Maybe she would occupy herself with Rin, whenever the young medic wasn't busy...

As the red-haired kunoichi took the last step onto the second floor, she paused and stared at the door. She could see a note, pinned to the wooden surface by a senbon so that it wouldn't fly off in the wind.

_Odd..._ Kushina thought as she took a couple of steps, but froze when she saw something peculiar on the folded piece of paper. The marking, drawn in what looked to be charcoal, was all too familiar to Kushina. Her heart accelerated and she could feel herself trembling as she reached up to grab the note, taking the senbon and stared at the folded paper. She didn't even realize she was shaking until she looked around wildly, as if the expecting the writer to be waiting around for her. No one.

_This can't be Daylian._ Kushina thought as she fumbled to get the key into the hole, hastily unlocking the door and yanking it open to step inside. She clutched the note as she closed the door, eyes quickly scanning the apartment for any sign of her brother-by-law only to find that it was vacant. Kushina bit her lip and leaned against the closed door, staring down at the unopened note.

Uzu's swirled symbol was unmistakable to her.

"..." Kushina inhaled and exhaled as she tried to calm herself. Why was she getting so nervous...?

Kushina hastily dumped the bag of bentous on the table and strode across the apartment to sit on her bed, gnawing her lower lip as she continued to stare at the note, unsure of what to even think of it. Several different scenarios popped into her head, and it made her more tense than she already was.

What if it was a trap?

That question repeated itself in her head, being the most realistic. If it was a fellow Uzu refugee, then there would be no way they'd know her exact location, right...? ... But there was always Sandaime-sama to think about; he would probably point Kushina out, _if_ it was someone from Uzu...

She groaned a bit and hit herself lightly on the head with her knuckles, as if trying to hit the thoughts out of her head. There was only one way to find out...

Kushina held her breath, and she could plainly feel her heart ramming itself against her rib cage in nervous acceleration. Fingers trembling slightly, she opened the folded piece of paper.

_'Kushina,_

_This is... sudden, I know. But, with the war going on, I'm not sure if there will ever be a chance for us to meet up. I'd regret it if either of us died before we could... _

_I'll be waiting along the eastern wall._

_I'm pleading you. I didn't know there were any other Uzu survivors... It's a little warming, knowing that there is at least one... It would be nice... to catch up..._

_Please come at the dead of night. I'll be waiting alone. I promise over Uzu's honor._

_-Shimizu Shisu.'_

_Shisu?_ Kushina frowned a bit at the unfamiliar name, though she stared at the surname for a long time, as if trying to vaguely remember the kanji. Her brows flew up as she suddenly remembered, memories of an old woman with a kindly face flashing inside her head. _Ahh! That elderly lady that helped Mizuiro-nii-san that time-! _

Kushina's hands, and the note, dropped heavily to her lap. Her eyes grew blank, staring nothing in particular, as memories washed over her like a wave.

_"Hey, Mizuiro! Slow down!" Daylian barked against the torrential rain, squinting against the weather and even shielding his eyes with his arms. "Come on, you're leaving us behind here!" _

_"But there's this really cool place up ahead!" The brown haired teenager stopped to turn around, clearly unphased by the downpour as he grinned at his friends. "And it's even better when it's raining! Come on, it's not much further now!" _

_"Mizuiro, you're being stupid! Look! Your sister is falling behind!" A kunoichi growled, before turning around to regroup with the young child that was trying to catch up. _

_Kushina looked up at Mika, hugging herself as she peered at her brother's friend through the rain. She shivered violently and gatefully accepted help from Mika, feeling the older kunoichi's warmer body pressing up against her deathly cold skin. Mika gasped upon feeling this, shooting a glare at Kushina's older brother. The nerve of him...! _

_"Mizuiro! Kushina-chan is going to catch a serious cold out here!" She scolded loudly enough over the splattering rain. Warily, she looked over at Daylian for help when she received no response from the stubborn brown haired teen. Daylian shifted on his feet, the mud squelching beneath his zori, before he turned around to look at his friend. _

_"Come on, Mizuiro... Let's do this another time. It's practically flooding!" Daylian urged with his mouth cupped to his mouth. Though he frowned when Mizuiro didn't budge. "Come on! Next time you can bring Suzu-nee along!" _

_At the mention of his girlfriend, Mizuiro sighed and nodded. He trudged through the pouring rain, but froze when the muddy earth shifted beneath his feet. _

_Kushina could only grip onto Mika fearfully as the next few seconds were a blur. One second, her brother and Daylian were standing a few yards in front of her, the next, there was a massive mound of mud and even tree trunks. She saw Daylian on the ground just a foot away from the mudslide, before he yelled and immediately lunged into the mud, digging through the heavy pile even though the rain only made it harder to do so. For some reason, everything sounded muffled to Kushina; Daylian and Mika's cries, the sound of pouring rain... She could only stare numbly at the mound, and she didn't even realize that Mika had run off to get help. _

_The young redhead stumbled over to the pile, eyes wide in disbelief. She turned her head as she stood next to Daylian, who was still attempting to dig through the mud even though it seemed hopeless with the rain sliding the mud over whatever inches Daylian had dug through. _

_"Mizuiro! Mizuiro!" Daylian's screams were slowly becoming audible again to Kushina. A sudden fear gripped at her chest when the situation dawned on her slowly, and she choked out for a breath, holding her throat as if struggling to breath. She collapsed to her knees, and she could see Daylian turning to fearfully look at her. Through her impending panic attack, she felt her shoulders being grabbed and shaken. _

_"'Shina! Pull yourself together! Kushina!" _

_Kushina's eyes only grew wide as saucers, managing to gasp a bit when Daylian stopped shaking her. She coughed violently and placed a hand on the muddy ground, gasping in damp air between fits of coughs. She looked up when she saw a pair of feet appear in her darkening peripherals, finding an elderly woman placing her hands into hand signs. _

_"Who...?" _

_"Shimizu-baa-san..." Daylian whispered, just before the ground shook and the mudslide burst to life. The giant earth mound moved almost like a snake, sliding off to the side of the path and close to the small cliff where it came from. Mizuiro was on the muddy path just to their left, sprawled face down, covered in mud that was already starting to be cleaned away by the torrential rain._

_Kushina swayed on her knees and fell backwards, though she was caught by someone. Before her eyes closed completely, she stared up at a boy probably Daylian's age, with his hair sticking to his face from the rain. Teal eyes stared down at her, and she could see a brow raising under his drenched black bangs..._

Kushina blinked out of her daze and looked around the room, finding her self back in the apartment, back in Konoha, back in the present. That flashback felt so vivid to her... She could still clearly remember how cold the rain was, and the petrifying feeling in her chest... It felt surreal, being back in a warm room and miles away from what Uzu used to be. Kushina brought her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, resting her chin ontop her knees. She sat on her bed in that position for what felt like ten minutes to her, Shisu's note crumpled and balled in one of her hands.

Her eyelids were slowly starting to droop as she continued to contemplate over the note.

She honestly felt rather torn, and the feeling hurt inside her chest. This guy was from Uzu, and he had absolutely no idea that there were survivors other than himself... Kushina knew the feeling, all too well. But at the same time, it was _war_ and he wanted to meet her in the dead of night... What would Minato think if he ever caught her doing that? She squeezed her eyes shut at the very thought and tried not to even think about it, gripping the note even tighter.

When the knob to the door turned, Kushina immediately raised her head and scrambled to stuff the note under her pillow, flopping onto her stomach just as the door opened. She quickly wrapped her arms around her pillow and rested her head on it, pretending to slowly wake up as Daylian entered the apartment. Through her half lidded eyes she could see Daylian pausing, as if wondering whether she was going to wake up or not.

".. Oi, oi, 'Shina. Wake up. No sense in being wide awake later during the evening, right?"

Kushina almost stiffened at his comment, but willed herself to look as calm and sleepy as possible. She continued to feign drowsiness as she pushed herself up to her knees, faking a yawn and rubbing one of her eyes, all while silently hoping that Daylian would buy it.

"Yeah, yeah. I guess." Kushina grumbled. As she slyly peered over at Daylian while rubbing the imaginary drowsiness from her eyes, she calmed upon realizing that he wasn't questioning her about being suspicious. There was a painful pang in her chest when it dawned on her that she actually got away with lying about something so important.

Kushina brought her knees up to her chest again, burying her face in her knees as she quietly wondered how long she would be able to keep it up, all while guilt was viciously eating at her conscience.

* * *

She wasn't sure how she did it, but she did. For the last few hours she had pretended to sleep; being careful to keep her breathing calm and even, and having her back turned so that Daylian wouldn't see her half opened eyes. There were several occasions where she almost did fall asleep, since her bed comfortably sunk with the contours of her body, and with the temperature being the perfect degree for one to sleep pleasantly under the covers, it was difficult for her to keep her lidded eyes open.

Though she somehow became wide awake when she turned to look at the time. Carefully she sat up, trying not to ruffle the bedsheet so much as to wake Daylian, stepped over the sleeping wolf, and tiptoed her way to the door. She was already dressed to leave and had hidden her body under the blanket so that he wouldn't take notice. Kushina placed her hand carefully on the door knob and slowly began to turn the cold metal sphere...

"... Where are you going?"

Kushina could feel her muscles become rigid at the drowsy voice, and she turned her head, almost mechanically and dreadfully slow, to look at Daylian. The black wolf had his back turned to her, and he was still laying on his flank, as if too tired to even bother looking up at her.

"... I, uh.. Can't sleep... Just gonna take a stroll and come back... Get some fresh air..."

"Nn..." Daylian exhaled a grumble before he yawned a high-pitched yawn, the kind canines did occasionally. "Don't.. stay out too late..." He mumbled, his words slowly becoming slurred and eventually whispered.

"... Hai..." Kushina whispered, before she stepped out of the apartment, carefully and slowly closing the door shut. She turned around and leaned against the wooden rectangle with a heavy sigh, placing a hand over her chest, as if trying to contain the panic that had jolted to life. She took several deep breaths, then walked forward and jumped into a shunshin.

* * *

The night air was enjoyably cool, but Kushina could only nervously cast several glances around with every two steps she took, searching for a ninja that looked remotely similar to the boy in her memories. She wandered along the eastern wall for what felt like nearly an hour to her, with no sign of anyone or anything. It was dead. Heck, Kushina was beginning to feel rather drowsy herself.

Kushina was even about to give up and turn back around to head home. That was when she spotted something swishing slowly against a tree trunk. She stiffened for a second when she saw the set of teal eyes, and hesitantly took a half step back. The large feline fluidly darted down the large tree, and once his paws thudded softly against the ground, a man stood up in its place. If Kushina was any other ninja that didn't know Daylian, then she would have been surprised. It was hard to tell with so little moonlight, but she could see that he had moppy hair, which looked a little gray in the dull lighting. His hands were in his pockets, teal eyes staring at her.

Kushina could only stare at him, unsure of what to do next. The foot that had taken a step back dragged backwards an inch, as if she were tempted to back away another pace or two.

"... Kushina." The teal-eyed ninja greeted with a slight nod. She could hear some bones pop at the movement, and he growled a bit, making her actually take one step back. She watched as he pulled his hands out of his pockets, rolling his shoulders and popping them. To her, it sounded pretty painful, and wondered if it had something to do with changing into an animal...

"Hi..." Kushina could only say, and the awkwardness was clearly evident in her voice.

Shisu chuckled, and it startled Kushina. He shifted to sit down with a sigh and leaned back against the tree trunk, staring at her as if expecting her to sit down too. Kushina only stood her ground, fidgeting awkwardly as she stared back at him.

"You don't recognize me, do you?" Shisu asked.

"... I.. sorta do..." Kushina admitted hesitantly, occasionally stealing a glance at him to make sure he wouldn't get up and do anything.

"I'm Mika's older brother."

Kushina was in the middle of looking back at the large village wall to her right when she froze at the name. Her gaze snapped back to him, almost in disbelief, and she scanned his face, with difficulty, to try and find any features similar to Mika's. She could only find one common factor and it was the color of his hair, making her inwardly frown a bit.

_It's too dark... So I can't tell if he's really Mika's brother or not... _

Shisu seemed to have sense her doubtfulness, and reached into the beige weapon pouch that rested on his hip. Kushina saw this and immediately took several steps back, drawing a hidden kunai and pointing it at the ninja.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, take your hand out of your weapon pouch.. Slowly." Kushina ordered with a growl, her other hand making a seal as if to further threaten him. She couldn't see him flinch, if he even did, as he slowly raised both of his hands to shoulder height, his right hand holding something.

"Just calm down... I'm giving you proof..." Shisu murmured. With a flick of his wrist, he sent the object flying, which clattered to the ground at the midpoint between the two of them. As it clattered to the ground, Kushina realized there was a second object, although small. Kushina kept her kunai raised with caution, skeptically looking back up at Shisu, whom only jutted his chin towards the two object with his hands still raised.

"..." Kushina carefully took a couple of steps forward, though the motion was agonizingly slow. She kept her eyes on him warily and made sure the kunai in her extended arm was constantly pointing at him. Her heart was thudding quickly, and she couldn't help but be conscious. Daylian had good hearing, even in human form, so why wouldn't this guy...?

It made her nervous, even as she reached the two objects he had thrown. She could tell one was a hitai-ate, but once she lowered down, the hair accessory was unmistakable. Kushina nearly dropped the kunai as she picked up the hair chopstick, with the notable dragonfly decorating the top, and she almost immediately noticed the ashy texture that was layered some sections.

Kushina could feel her raised arm shaking as she bit her lower lip, undesirable waves of grief washing over her. _Mika..._

"... I went back a couple of weeks after _that night_."

The kunoichi looked up when Shisu spoke, a couple of tears sliding down her cheeks. She quickly wiped them away with the back of the hand that held the hair accessory, then looked down down at the hitai-ate. The edges of the cloth were black from where the fire had eaten away at it, and there was a layer of unremoveable ash and grime on the metal plate.

"Most of them perished in the fire... but I gave everyone else proper burials."

Kushina almost gasped at his words, this time dropping the hitai-ate when she had reached forward to pick it up. She looked up and bit her lower lip again at what she saw. There were a few tears slipping from Shisu's teal eyes as he stared back at her sadly. She could feel her own tears multiplying, streaking across her cheeks as she tried to wipe them away. The heavy feeling in her chest only made her more sad, and she found herself unable to reply, her breath caught at the back of her throat.

"Mika... Grandmother... Suzu-san.. Mizuiro... And everyone else I could identify all have a proper resting place..." Shisu tried to keep his voice level, but it cracked a bit towards the end before he lowered his head, covering his eyes with his hand just as he choked back a soft sob.

Kushina felt her heart sink at this, and she was suddenly sorry she had even doubted him. Sheathing her kunai and picking up the hitai-ate, she carefully got to her feet and walked. She was carefully cleaning the dragonfly hair chopstick as she approached him, managing to wipe off some of the grime before she stopped in front of him, two strides away. She carefully lowered down before the seated man, staring at the dragonfly carving on the accessory in silence.

She wiped her reddening eyes with the back of her hand, and carefully held out the two items to him. A tear managed to slip out, just as she weakly smiled at him.

"Thank you..."

Shisu managed to stop himself from visibly stiffening, staring at the lone tear rolling down Kushina cheek. He refrained himself from wiping it away, just like he often did with his younger sister, and instead reached out slowly to take the two treasured items from Kushina's opened hands.

"... May we meet again?" Shisu's deep voice broke through the silenced air, and Kushina had to stop to think for a bit at his question.

He was an Iwa ninja, formerly of Uzu, and she resided in Konoha, in the middle of the 3rd Great Ninja War. More than half of the battles Konoha had were against Iwa, and occasionally Suna, and it was obvious that both sides hated eachother. But, it wasn't as though she was leaking information about the war; In fact, they didn't even mention the war once. Shisu only asked to meet with her, both of them having hailed from the country of Uzu, and he showed no signs of hostility, or any thought of the 3rd War at all. He was another Uzu refugee, just as she and Daylian were, who wanted to meet with the only survivor he knew of.

Kushina smiled weakly, and then nodded.

"Of course..."

* * *

Another sleepless night for him.

Or, somewhat. He had managed to fall asleep somewhere around what he assumed was 11, with an opened book on his face, and woke up with a start after having a sort of nightmare. He was sitting up in his bed, slouched forward as he panted a bit. His temples were slick with sweat, making his yellow hair stick annoyingly to his skin. After inhaling and exhaling, the blond managed to calm himself, reminding himself that it was only a nightmare, nothing more. Minato wiped his temples with the back of his hands, and turned his blue gaze to the clock on the small table next to his bed.

_3 a.m. _

Minato would have groaned, if he weren't so used to waking up in the middle of the night. Instead, he swung his legs over onto the floor and got out of bed, then stretched a bit. That was when he remembered that he didn't have any tea, or milk for that matter, and sighed. Usually a nice warm beverage eased him back into sleep, so he went with his second option.

Slipping on a long-sleeved shirt, Minato left the house.

He exhaled a warm breath, finding that the night air was still chilly, even with spring already flourishing the village. Whatever remaining snow had been cleared out long ago, and all the trees and plants were a healthy green, though it wasn't noticeable at all during the night. The moon was waning, providing little lighting, though Minato knew his way around the village, moonlight or not.

Minato's hands were in his pockets as he strolled through the empty streets, though there would be an occasional villager, most of them usually stumbling home after a few hours of drinking. The blond usually ignored them, focusing on walking down the streets and trying to forget his nightmare.

It wasn't hard to; with the village quiet, save the crickets and breezes, the blond was able to find himself relaxing. And, just like always, his mind wandered to Kushina. His shoulders rose and fell as he took a soft breath. For the past several weeks, he had been imagining what it would be like if the kunoichi lived with him... Minato smiled lightly and exhaled a throaty chuckle.

_I definitely wouldn't have much walks like these..._ He thought with a sigh, imagining how simple it would be to just roll over after having a nightmare and prod Kushina awake, instead of going out and walking for the remainder of the night.

Minato's pace slowed to a halt as he turned to glimpse back at his house. He could just make it out in the distance, being one of the only few two-storied homes along the street. It was probably the thousandth time he thought of moving out of his parents' former home and into a smaller one, and he recalled having first thought about it a few months after his parents' deaths in battle... It must have been two or three years, and he never actually got around to selling the house. He couldn't quite explain why- aside from being busy training his team and the war. Minato stole another glimpse over his shoulder, though he shook his head and turned to continue his early morning walk.

Perhaps it was the nostalgia of growing up in that residence...?

Minato gave the idea some thoughts, then quickly concluded that it wasn't it. It was terrible to say, the very least, but he didn't recall having all that much fond memories in that house. He could honestly only count four or so; when he graduated from the Academy and became a Genin, when he successfully passed the Chuunin exams, when he was taken under Jiraiya's care...

When he confessed to Kushina.

The last memory made him smile immediately and he could feel his chest warming, despite the chilly spring air. _That day_, he remembered, was filled with all kinds of emotions, almost nearly as much as _that same night_.

He had encountered Iwata Masuhita and received his moniker that would inspire fear in all opposing ninja. His parents died in a battle that involved Suna, and he got thrown into a near-maddening whirlpool of emotions that lead him to snap at Kushina. When he went looking for the kunoichi and saw her in distress, he was immediately submersed in dangerous bloodlust that nearly led him to actually kill an Uchiha. Minato narrowed his eyes at the memory, and clenched his fists tightly in his pockets. He huffed a bit and shook his head, recalling that he had intervented before the Uchiha could do anything further to his love. _Despicable._ Minato thought darkly. If he could go back and relive the moment he yanked the Uchiha away from Kushina, he would definitely give him a few punches that the Uchiha would never forget... But, nearly strangling him would have to do.

The blond slowed to another halt, angling his head so that he could stare up at the night sky.

And then he had confessed to Kushina.

His smile returned slowly, recalling the dizzying roller coaster of emotions. Before that night, he never thought that he would end up with the love of his life. And now...

Minato turned his head to look over at the paper lantern that hung over a carefully arranged flower garden. Like always, he stopped to admire the small garden that Kushina's landlady grew, and then looked over at the apartment building itself. It was one of his stops in his routinely walk, and it was common for him to hang around the residence for as long as an hour; whether it was walking laps around the building, or simply sitting on the top step of the stairs.

In silence, he traversed the grounds, stealing a glance up at Kushina's window whenever he rounded that side of the building. When he first started walking around the apartment building a few months back, he had no idea why he did was he was doing. It took him two nights to figure it out, and at first he thought it was rather silly of him. But after a recurring nightmare he had one week, he found himself being serious while he patrolled the grounds for anyone or thing suspicious that got too close.

He counted himself walking eight times around the apartment, and then decided that tonight he would also sit atop the stairs for a while. And, like always, as he made his way up the steps silently, he resisted the longing urge to go knock on her door, and forced himself to sit on the stairs, feeling the cold cement beneath him as he did. He often found himself staring at the door, and sighed, turning his head back to the front. Minato knew that with Daylian living with Kushina, there would be no way the black-haired ninja would allow him inside, even if it was just to check up on the kunoichi.

_"Oh, she's fine. Sleeping like a rock." _

Minato could practically hear Daylian's responses already. But he couldn't keep himself from chuckling when another thought came to him.

_At least Kushina is safer with him._ He smiled as he got to his feet and stared at the apartment entrance. He felt a little more at ease, knowing this fact, and started down the steps, skipping the last two with a silent jump. When he looked over his shoulder, he could just see the top of the door. Minato couldn't help but wordlessly hope that it would open and Kushina would step out for some air. He counted ten seconds, then laughed softly at himself to deny his disappointment.

His little 'night patrols' would have to make due... for now.

Minato exhaled a sigh, though it was a content one. Slipping his hands into his pockets and smiling, he continued his morning walk, with the whole reason he was here to begin with completely forgotten.

"Sleep tight, Kushina..."

* * *

**Author(ess)'s Notes:  
Kiki:** Andddd Shisu's brought into the picture! .. book... Er.  
You know what I mean. xD

...

Oh hooomygawwwwd, guys! ;A; I was BAWLING my eyes out at the last couple Naruto chapters!  
... What? Don't look at me like that. D': Watching my favorite (dead) characters die is just... heartbreaking. ;-; Nnnngh, Minato.. Kushina... ;A; You guys have a solid place in my heart as my all time favorite characters ever.

Sigh, sigh, guys. (Haha, it rhymed.) I'm starting school tomorrow. u.u My senior year is already here... Man, I remember my freshman year like it was yesterday. I feel old, guys. -book'd-  
So, updates might be a tad slower, but I'm hoping that won't be the case. I'll try to stick to a bi-weekly update schedule, if not tri-weekly. D:

Thanks for your support, and see you guys next chapter!


	33. Stories

**Chapter XXXIII: Stories**

"Geez, 'Shina! It's already 10! Get your lazy butt out of bed!"

"Nnngh..." Kushina groaned at Daylian's nagging, only responding by rolling over so that her back faced her guardian. She exhaled a second groan when she found that the harsh sunlight was still able to get in through the window, and pulled her sheets over her head to block it out, if at least a little. She could hear Daylian scoff behind her, and felt his grip on the bed sheets a few seconds after. He yanked off the blanket of the younger kunoichi, though Kushina responded by rolling onto her stomach and hugging her pillow, her face buried in it.

"Geez, 'Shina..." Daylian repeated, and she sensed that he was rolling his eyes as he did. "Why are you being such a lazy bum?"

"Because I'm tired..." Kushina mumbled, her voice muffled by the pillow. She felt the edge of the bed sinking down, and assumed that Daylian was putting his foot on it. She heard him snort and ignored it, yawning instead of responding. She honestly felt rather tired, especially after staying awake and walking in and out of the village in the early morning hours... "... Just give me thirty minutes..."

"That's what you said an hour ago..." Daylian growled as he bounced the foot that was on the bed, steadily increasing tempo until he was practically stomping on it, making the kunoichi bounce at least an inch off the bed. Kushina growled irritably at this. Timing herself, she twisted and kicked him in the stomach just as she was sent up into the air again, hearing him grunt when the attack connected to his stomach. Kushina flopped onto the bed's surface, but she rolled onto her back, draping her arm over her eyes to block out the sunlight. She kept herself from wincing; a small pang in her stomach showing that it was upset from being bounced around like that.

"Why the heck are you so tired anyway? ... Just what did you do the day before...?" Daylian questioned, eyes narrowing slightly at the second one. Kushina sighed and pushed herself up to a sitting position, frowning as she squinted so that her eyes could adjust to the harsh lighting. She rubbed her eyes and stifled a yawn, not bothering to cover her mouth.

"I dunno..." She lied without looking at him, knowing that if she did, he would be able to figure out that she wasn't telling the truth. "I had a hard time sleeping last night.. I kept waking up... And I even went out for air, remember?"

"... Oh.. Right..." Daylian had to think to recall that she did go out at one point. The corner of his mouth twitched. "... Wait... Don't tell me you're tired because you were sneaking out to meet blondy."

Kushina was rubbing her eyes, thankfully, so they couldn't visibly widen. She shook her head, knowing that if she lied and said she did, Daylian would question the aforementioned blond about it. She could feel the guilt forming like a heavy stone in her chest, and it made her uncomfortable. "... No... I didn't. I just went out for a walk..."

"... Right..." Daylian seemed to sound skeptical, making Kushina nervous. Though she inwardly breathed a sigh of relief when he shrugged it off and turned around. "Well, there's left over's for you. I already ate two hours ago..." He threw over his shoulder, emphasizing the number with a roll of his violet eyes. Kushina sighed softly at him, sliding off the bed to trail over to her dresser instead, her stomach still a little dizzy from being bounced. She gathered some new clothes and entered the bathroom, closing the door shut behind her.

Kushina leaned against the door with a sigh, clutching her folded clothes to her chest as if to try and muffle the sound of her pumping heart. She groaned, softly, and dumped her new clothes on the counter so that she could remove the ones she was wearing.

_I'll feel better after a shower... _She denied to herself as she stepped into the tub, turning the dial and letting the cold water rain down on her head. Kushina barely flinched, and instead welcomed the cold shower, feeling refreshed as she ran her hands over her red hair. Her hands followed her hair down to her shoulders, and she quietly wondered if she should cut it for the summer that was only a few months away. Closing her eyes and tilting her head back so that the water hit her face, thinking to herself. Maybe she would ask Minato...

Minato...

She felt another pang of guilt hit her, and questioned herself. Would she tell him? She could feel her heart rate pick up at how he would react, and she shook her head. Kushina sighed and tilted her head forward, blindly reaching for the bottle of shampoo and squeezing some of the content into her palm, the shower suddenly filled with the smell of citrus. She continued to think to herself, feeling the amount of bubbles increasing as she lathered her hair.

She would just have to keep it a secret. It's not like she was cheating...

_Absolutely not! _Kushina frowned at the very thought, flinching when a bit of shampoo got into her eye. She washed her eye out and then her hair, huffing to herself. _I'm not some cheating whore... _Kushina closed her eyes and continued to wash the shampoo out of her hair. _Never. _

Kushina curiously thought of what Minato might be doing today, and came to the conclusion that it would more than likely be training his students. _Maybe I'll go to the grounds and pay them a visit... _She nodded. _Yeah... That'll get my mind of all this... _

Having made up her mind, Kushina hummed a small tune as she continued to lather her arms and shoulders with soap, her gaze trailing upwards to the ceiling as she forced her mind into other topics. Her primary thoughts were on what she could cook for Minato next time; once the take outs were eaten through (she estimated the life of those bentou's to be two days).

_Maybe domburi or fried rice... I think either would be fun to make... _Kushina mused, before she closed her eyes and ducked under the showering water to rinse off the soap on her body. She blindly reached for the knob and turned the water off. She stood there for several seconds to let some of the water drip, before she wildly shook her hair, hearing the splatters against the tile and water proof curtain. She then proceeded to wring her hair out, a process that took a while considering how much her hair had grown in length.

Kushina reached her arm out to blindly grope for a towel that hung on the rack, pulling it behind the curtain so that she could wrap it around herself. She slipped out of the tub with a content sigh, feeling much more refreshed than she had earlier. She definitely needed that shower.

She dressed herself after using the towel to dry off, and she started the long process of getting her hair to a damp level while she stared at her reflection in the mirror. It was then she realized that she had showered with her hair clip on, _again_, and she quickly unclipped it so that she could properly dry that section of her hair. She blew the long bang that fell over her eye, frowning before she clipped it back out of her face, still grateful that Minato had gotten her the small accessory. If it weren't for that simple clip, she probably would have chopped off that annoying lock of hair.

Kushina mused that thought with a roll of her eyes, snorting to herself. She hung the used bath towel on the rack, and opened the bathroom door, then stretched with a wide grin plastered on her face.

"Ahh, I'm feeling so much better!"

"I would hope so; you slept for practically ten hours." Daylian growled with a deadpan expression, violet eyes watching the kunoichi as she sat down at the dining table to eat the bentou she had bought the previous day. He snorted and shook his head, walking towards the door shortly after.

"I'm off to work. Don't get yourself into trouble, you hear?"

"Yeah, yeah." Kushina mumbled through the bundle of rice in her mouth. "I can look after myself, y'know."

Daylian snorted and quickly ducked out the door before she could question the response. Kushina huffed a bit, but returned to eating her breakfast-slash-lunch. She sat alone in the apartment, unmindful of the silence that hung in the air, save the sound of her chopsticks occasionally clinking against her teeth.

When she finally finished, she hastily got up and threw away the empty bentou container, taking the spare key and leaving the quiet apartment behind. The streets were already busy, and Kushina had to remind herself that she had woken up at a late hour, so she quickly fell into pace, ignoring the swirls of different conversations all around her. Instead she enjoyed the spring air, raising her arms above her head and stifling a yawn. It was perfect weather for training, she mused.

At a leisure walk, she knew that it would take her ten minutes to get to the training grounds, so she parted herself from the main crowd of villagers into a clearer part of the street. She bent her knees slightly and then quickly jumped into a shunshin, greatly lessening the time it would take her to arrive at the grounds. Her pace slowed as she followed the dirt road that was surrounded by trees, eventually approaching the familiar, rickety fence that was to keep non-ninja residents out. She easily cleared the jump without breaking a sweat, landing on the other side and venturing further. She almost immediately spotted three familiar genin, in which two of them were sparring with each other.

Kushina stopped mid-walk, observing the two teammates as they fought. By the way Rin was only sitting by and watching them, she could tell they weren't actually trying to kill each other, although she could tell that they at least wanted to harm the other one in some way. Obito's taijutsu strikes were filled with actual force, rather than the restrained movements one would normally use in training. She could see him getting more and more frustrated when Kakashi only nimbly dodged or parried the moves, then eventually he huffed in annoyance and backed off when Kakashi jumped over a sweep of his leg.

"Kushina-san!" Rin called with a wave of her hand once her two teammates had finished their sparring. "Good morning!"

Obito looked up at Rin's words, turning his head in Kushina's direction just as the redhead approached them. "Oh.." He blinked in surprise. It was evident that he was so focused in training that he wasn't aware Kushina had arrived. "Kushina-nee-san..."

Kushina gave them a warm smile once she was close enough, looking down at Rin when the medic-in-training approached. "Good morning, you guys."

"Are you here to train us?" Obito asked as he pushed his goggles off his eyes and onto his hitai-ate, a questioning look clearly on his face. Kushina blinked and stole another glance around the clearing. It was only then she realized that Minato wasn't around, supervising them or testing his own jutsu like he usually was...

"Oh...!" Rin had easily caught Kushina scanning the grounds and realized that she didn't know. "Sensei was with us earlier, but... Then he got called on a mission a little while ago... So that's why we're here alone."

"... Oh." Kushina frowned in disappointment and sighed. _So much for spending the day with him too..._

"Haaa, do you know how disappointed I was, nee-san?" Obito grumbled. "He had to leave right when I got here."

"That's because you're always late." Kakashi rolled his eyes at his Uchiha teammate. "And it was a mission from Hokage-sama himself; of course he'd have to accept."

"Hey, I couldn't just leave the little girl alone! She was lost and crying!" Obito retorted with a fold of his arms, eying Kakashi for a bit. "She got reunited with her grandpa thanks to me!"

Kushina couldn't bite back the chuckles of amusement, though she covered her mouth a bit as she did. She couldn't tell if he was telling the truth or not, but if he was lying, at least he made up a fairly decent excuse. Kakashi and Obito's ensuing argument faded into the background as she thought to herself, wondering what kind of mission Minato was on and how long he would be gone. She forced a smile and convinced herself he would be back before she knew it...

"G.. guys... C'mon."

Kushina snapped out of her thoughts and looked back down at the three, finding that her gaze had trailed upwards to the sky while she was in her own world. Rin was standing close to the two, nervously smiling and hands raised while Kakashi and Obito glared at each other, though to no avail did her pleading cease their glares.

"... Alright, break it up." Kushina ordered with a soft snort, raising her hands to clap them a couple of times to pull the two back from their own world. "C'mon, how about we all train together for the day?" She suggested, and almost instantly she saw Obito spin on his heels to face her, a rather goofy grin on his face.

"Sure! That'd be awesome!"

"Thanks, Kushina-san!"

"Thank you..."

Kushina smiled at all of their responses, especially at Obito's enthusiastic one. "No problem... Now, what were you guys working on before Minato left...?"

"Counter attacks. But we're already good with taijutsu counters." Obito folded his arms with a light huff. Kushina tilted her head forward curiously and quirked a brow.

"Is that so... I remember Minato telling me that he was emphasizing teamwork... How has that been working out?"

"... Better..." Obito responded as he looked away, though he mumbled it, which told Kushina enough.

"... Well, let's work on that, then." Kushina raised her hands and went through a sequence of hand signs, ending with the ram seal. A second later there was a tall cloud and an audible _poof_! as a Bunshin appeared beside her, hands on her hip as she grinned down at the three. "Except, let's make it taijutsu counters and a light touch on ninjutsu ones, alright?"

"Really?" Obito's face lit up immediately, and if one were to look closely, a sparkle would have been visible in his onyx eyes. Kushina grinned at his enthusiasm.

"Right. But, judging from earlier, it looks like Rin hasn't been practicing in that department much..." Kushina's gaze fell upon Rin, who jumped slightly and shyly looked down. "... So, Obito, you and Kakashi will be fighting my Bunshin while I warm Rin up. Then I'll test all three of you out. How does that sound?"

"Freaking awesome! Let's start, now, now!"

Kushina chuckled as she walked past Obito, slinging an arm around Rin's shoulders and guiding her away from the other two students. "Alright, missy. Just because you're a medic doesn't mean you shouldn't learn how to defend yourself." Using her free hand, Kushina wagged her index finger in a lecturing motion. "Because what happens if you get targeted while you're healing someone?"

"... Something very bad."

"That's right. And besides, you need to show the world that girls can be just as strong too." Kushina grinned and removed her arm from Rin's shoulder once they were far enough, turning and folding her arms as she faced the young medic. "So let's see how good you are at taijutsu."

"Ah... hai!" Rin subconsciously bowed a bit, taking a couple of steps back to assume a fighting stance. Kushina assessed it by scanning her head to toe, before she dipped her head in a satisfactory nod; Rin's stance could use some adjustments, but the redhead only assumed it was because of Rin's lack of confidence. She unfolded her arms and parted her own feet, falling into an offensive stance of her own.

"Ready?"

"Hai."

Kushina could tell she was nervous, by the way her voice quivered slightly. She would go easy on the medic, she decided, and slowly increase speed and strength. She slid her front foot forward against the grass, and then darted forward to start their sparring. She started off with a punch that was half the speed that she would normally throw in a life-and-death battle, and was parried by the back of Rin's hand. As Kushina was forced off balance, she quickly placed the parried hand on the ground and spun into a kick. Rin seemed to panic and quickly jumped back to avoid Kushina's strike, pursing her bottom lip nervously as she took a couple of more steps backwards. The redhead kunoichi placed her feet back on the ground, patting her hands together to rid it of grass blades that stuck to her palms.

"Don't bit your lip, otherwise you'll find your teeth going right through it." Kushina advised as she fell back into position. "... Ready?"

"Hai..." Rin sounded almost reluctant this time, but she still nodded.

"And don't be afraid to try and counter every now and then. You can't dodge enemies forever." Kushina added before darting for the young kunoichi again.

As the two sparred, Kushina could see the kunoichi steadily improving. Rin's blocks and parries were showing more confidence as the training progressed, and the medic occasionally threw in a few counters whenever Kushina allowed a small opening. As the redhead parried a counter attack, she realized that Rin was slowly starting to pant, and frowned slightly. She ducked under a swinging kick, quickly straightening herself to strike back at the younger girl. Just as Rin diverted Kushina's fist away, the older kunoichi winced. Rin's counter came close to hitting Kushina in the stomach, but she quickly stopped when she saw Kushina's flinch.

"Kushina-san?"

"..." The redhead sighed as her Bunshin's memories came flooding into her head, before she turned and folded her arms to look at the two male students in the distance. "Hey! Kakashi! Don't use a kunai like that! You almost hit Obito!"

"See?"

Kushina could hear the Uchiha immediately growl to his teammate. She shook her head, looking back over at Rin and finding the young medic using the back of her hand to wipe away the sweat that dripped down her temples. Kushina could tell Rin was getting worn out, and it made her realize how much stamina she had gained over the years; the redhead wasn't even breaking a sweat.

"Sorry, Kushina-nee-san!" Obito called her attention. "Can you make another Bunshin for us?"

"..." With a slight roll of her eyes, Kushina went through the seal sequence and produced another Bunshin for the two, before shifting her attention back down to Rin. "How about we take a break?"

"I'm fine, Kushina-san." Rin smiled up at her, though Kushina could tell it was a bit forced. "Besides, I was just getting used to it."

"... Well, if you say so.. But I don't want you passing out on me." Kushina gave her a wary grin, before facing the kunoichi and parting her feet. Rin took a couple of inhales and then fell into the basic fighting stance, clamping her jaw shut so that she wouldn't bite her tongue like she almost had earlier.

The two kunoichi's stared each other down for a while, before Kushina finally made a move and lunged for the medic. As they exchanged strikes and counters, Kushina steadily picked up the speed, and inwardly smiled when she found that Rin was able to keep up with her.

Their nonstop sparring carried on for several minutes, the pace occasionally being turned up a notch, until finally Kushina jumped back several steps. The redhead was panting lightly, but Rin, on the other hand, placed her hands on her knees and tried to regain her breath. Kushina wiped away the stray bead of sweat on her forehead, grinning at Rin.

"Hey, you did a great job!" Kushina complimented as she dropped her arm back down to her side. "Take a break... You look like you're about to fall over..."

"H... hai..." Rin managed to stumble out between breaths, eventually straightening herself and using her sleeve to wipe away the perspiration that trail down her face. "Phew..." She wasn't heaving, but it was obvious she was still trying to regain her breath.

Kushina chuckled warily and approached the medic, guiding her back over to where the tree stumps were. Her red-brown eyes eventually trailed up and over to the sparring three, watching their progress.

Obito's hands were flying through another set of hand seals for a Katon, before the Uchiha drew back with a deep breath, holding it in as his onyx gaze watched Kakashi throw taijutsu attacks at the bunshin. Kakashi didn't have to glimpse over his shoulder to know that Obito was waiting for an opening, and then the silver-haired genin shot out of the Uchiha's line of sight, allowing the large Katon to fly for the bunshin.

_His chakra control's a lot better. _Kushina thought, impressed. And she had only last seen him a week or two ago...

Her bunshin avoided the Katon by ducking beneath the small space between the flames and the ground, darting forward when the fireball passed safely over head. Obito panicked a bit and took half a step back, before he frowned and clenched his fist, suddenly standing his ground as he begun to block and parry the strikes. Kakashi spun into the picture, planning on kicking the bunshin in the shoulder. She only frowned and blocked his kick with her forearm, while she grabbed one of Obito's fists with her free hand.

From where she was watching, Kushina winced and rubbed the same forearm the bunshin used to block. She was probably going to feel that later...

Rin was resting atop the tree stump, her breath slowly returning to its natural pace as she watched the two with impressed, wide eyes.

Kakashi recovered from his blocked attack, landing a few paces away from Kushina's bunshin while Obito whipped his fist out of her grasp, carrying on with the taijutsu strikes and occasionally landing a hit. Kakashi eventually jumped into the taijutsu barrages, occasionally throwing in a couple of small Katon jutsus in an attempt to throw the bunshin off.

Kushina could see that the two were eventually starting to wear out, though she was impressed with the stamina they already had. Probably from the hours of training with Minato, she guessed...

"Alright, guys, wrap it up." Kushina called, though Kakashi didn't even stop to acknowledge this. Obito, on the other hand...

The Uchiha went tumbling back several paces after receiving a solid punch to the stomach, and even landed on his back at the force. He coughed several times, folding his arms over his stomach as he rolled from side to side, growling. "Owwww, what the hell!"

"Oops." The bunshin's eyes were wide, and while she was distracted, Kakashi made quick due of her with the ring of a kunai. He ignored the cloud of smoke that bunshins always produced when they were defeated, turning his head and watching as the two kunoichi's rushed to the Uchiha's side. Kakashi snorted and sheathed the blade, folding his arms as he kept his distance.

"Sorry, sorry!" Kushina repeated apologetically as she pulled Obito upright into a sitting position, keeping her hand on the small of his back to keep him steady. Obito only squeezed an eye shut, wheezing a bit before he waved off Rin's hands that were about to examine his stomach.

"I'm fine..." He rasped, growling a bit as he struggled to get up to his feet. "I'm just a bit winded is all..."

Still, Kushina felt guilty. She frowned a bit and helped him onto his zori-covered feet, thinking of a way to make it up for the Uchiha. The idea suddenly struck her as she watched Obito rub his stomach, making her grin and raise an index finger.

"Hey, since you guys did great today, how about some ramen?"

"Eh?" Obito paused mid-massage to look up at her. "Ramen...?"

Kushina gave him a smile and nodded several times. "Yeah. It's about lunch time and it doesn't look like you three brought anything to eat."

Obito blinked at the realization, and even looked downwards and found that it was, indeed, noon with the shadows directly beneath them. He gave his stomach one last rub, as if making the pain going away, and then grinned up at her. "Hey, sure. That sounds good right about now, actually."

"Great." Kushina grinned when they took her offer, but remembered Kakashi and looked over at him. "You should come along too, Kakashi. It's my treat."

"..." Kakashi seemed to sigh; by the way his shoulders rose and fell in barely noticeable motions. "Fine."

Rin beamed as soon as he answered, looking up at their 'temporary sensei'. "Thank you, Kushina-san!"

"No problem." Kushina's own grin brightened at the younger medic's expression. "Now, let's head on over to Ichiraku's."

* * *

After treating them to lunch and letting their stomachs settle, Kushina took them back to the training grounds, under the request of the two guys. At first, Kushina started the three of them off by having a single Bunshin fight them, until they got the hang of it. Eventually Kushina added in a second bunshin, and then a third, although by the last one the three were worn out, so Kushina called it a day; it was nearing dusk anyway. She walked the trio until they said they could go the rest of the way on their own, bidding them goodbye for the time being.

She now found herself walking down the street that lead to her apartment, paying no mind to the villagers that were still out. On the whole walk home, she found herself curious as to what kind of mission Minato was sent out on, and wondered when he would be back. The thought made her sigh softly, but she shook her head and turned to climb the steps of the apartment building. Kushina stretched as she approached the door, exhaling a sigh before she lowered her hands to fish out the key.

She slipped into the apartment and knew instantly that Daylian wasn't present. It was too still, too quiet. Not to mention that the lights were off.

She flipped on the lights and her eyes were immediately drawn to the small slip of paper on the dining table. Kicking off her zori, she approaching the table and picked up the note, frowning at the scrawled writing the older ninja left behind.

_'Going out on a mission. Be back tomorrow around 6. The day after at the most.'_

Well, that was great.

Kushina rolled her eyes and crumpled the note, dropping it into the trash bin as she passed it. She hopped onto her bed, sitting up as she stared at the flower pot on the windowsill. The small forget-me-not flowers were blooming in time with spring, and it reminded her that she had to water it as well as the other plants. She slipped off the bed with a slight yawn, and then trailed over to the counter where she kept her empty, styrofoam ramen cup. She filled it with water and poured the liquid into the pot of the bamboo stalk close by, then refilled it and repeated with the other flower pots, eventually moving onto the forget-me-nots on the other side of the room.

Kushina settled onto her bed and just sat there, holding the empty cup in her hand as she stared dazedly at the light-blue flowers. The corner of her mouth twitched when she looked down at the painted pot, remembering how Sae had painted on the names of her lost family members, as well as the decorative swirls in a memento of her past village.

It also reminded her of Shisu.

"..." She closed her eyes and exhaled a long, dragging sigh.

Should she really? Her eyelids rose so that she could stare out the window, her face blank as she thought about it. She hardly noticed the sky outside turn from tropical colors to cool ones, and eventually into the dark of night with small stars blinking into sight.

_"I'll be hanging around for a couple of weeks or so." _He had told her before she left the previous night. Kushina gnawed at her thumb nail while she was thinking, frowning a bit. It wouldn't have been fair if he was risking his life to hang around and she didn't bother to show up; _especially_ since she had agreed to meet up with him again. The redhead's shoulders rose and fell in a heavy sigh.

_He's just a fellow Uzu survivor._ She reminded herself as she got up off her bed, trying to shake off the guilt with each step she took towards the door.

* * *

She walked slowly, to kill time, so it was already rather late by the time she walked along the eastern walls outside village. Just like the previous night, she walked with caution, cutting off her chakra so that she wouldn't be detected by someone inside the village, and kept her footsteps feather light. With the waning moon, the lighting was just as bad as the previous night, so Kushina had to scan the forest thoroughly to make sure she didn't miss him. After what felt like nearly an hour of cautious walking, she spotted some dim light a little further into the forest. She looked at the village walls for a few seconds, and then trekked away from the path and into the forest. Upon closer examination, she saw that the dim light was coming from some fireflies inside a small jar, which was placed in the middle of a small clearing. What made her stop was the absence of who she was expecting, her head turning to look in several different directions.

"... Shisu...?"

"... Sorry." The former Uzu ninja dropped down from the branches overhead, lowering into a crouch beside the jar. "You startled me... I didn't expect you to show up tonight..."

_I didn't either._ Kushina thought to herself, but watched as he sat down next to the jar of fireflies. He scanned the area behind her briefly, as if making sure she wasn't followed, then jutted his chin a bit, as if beckoning her to sit. Kushina shifted from foot to foot, and just decided to lower into a squat, resting her arms on her thighs as she stared down at the ground.

A rather heavy silence clung to the air, and it felt heavy on Kushina's shoulders. She was almost tempted to just up and leave, but exhaled a near-inaudible sigh. She walked all the way out here, might as well try and start a conversation, right...?

"How did you wind up in Iwa, anyway?" Kushina murmured, although it sounded loud in the silence of the forest. She heard Shisu shift from his spot a couple of yards away, but she didn't bother to look up, and instead extended her right arm so that she could idly draw swirls in the dirt using her pointer finger.

"It's a really long story..." Shisu gave a throaty chuckle, although Kushina could just detect a light nervousness behind it. This made the corner of her mouth give the slightest of twitches, but she didn't look up and only continued to draw swirls in the dirt.

"I've got time..." Kushina only replied simply, and he fell silent.

"..."

"..." Kushina stole a quick glimpse up at him, only to see him staring down at the fireflies trapped in the jar. She then returned her gaze downwards when she saw his eyes flicker towards her direction.

"... I was pretty hurt so I collapsed at Iwa's borders where they found me." Shisu finally replied after another couple of silent minutes. Kushina's finger paused from her doodling, before she quickly resumed the idle rhythm and frowned a bit. Clearly, his story was clipped, which only made her a little wary as to _why_ he did so.

"That was a pretty short story to me." Kushina commented almost too dryly, but it was true. She tried her best to look nonchalant, and it probably helped since she kept her gaze adverted while passively etching curved lines in the ground. From where she was crouching she could hear him clear his throat airily, before he softly started speaking.

"Well, I could ask the same." Shisu murmured. "How did you end up in Konoha?"

"..." The redhead swallowed a forming lump in her throat as horrifying images flashed in her head, but she tried to fight off a shudder that threatened to give away her feelings. "... Mizuiro-nii-san risked his life to get me out of the village safely... And he said I could probably make it here," Kushina explained as she reached for a leaf that fell from a branch overhead, using it to sweep away the swirls in the dirt. She decided to use the stem of the leaf to draw, rather than her index finger, and only watched quietly as her hand subconsciously drew Konoha's symbol.

"... So, here I am." She smiled faintly to herself, and she prayed thanks to her brother. Without him, she wouldn't be alive. Without him, she never would have met her love...

"How noble of him..." Shisu murmured as he distracted himself by continuing to stare at the fireflies, almost in a mesmerized manner. "I'm not surprised..."

"Mm..." Kushina hummed in agreement, her soft smile still evident on her features. "I've seen him do a bunch of stuff like that for Suzu-nee."

_'Lian's older sister..._ Shisu thought to himself as he dipped his head into a single nod, continuing to avoid her gaze as he recalled how he had heard from his sister about all of Mizuiro's near-insane methods to impress his girlfriend. "I only saw him the time he stood atop the tallest building and yelled out to the village for the guys to keep away from her." He gave a wary smile at the thought, and remembered how he thought it was rather idiotic of Mizuiro at the time. Thinking back, he had to give kudos to the brave ninja... Mizuiro definitely wasn't shy about his relationship. "... But, I think he was just trying to embarrass Suzu that time."

"He was." Kushina chuckled a bit. "He told me once we got home..." The kunoichi tilted her head back to peer through the branches above them and stare up at the night sky, finding a couple of stars twinkling dimly. "... But he really did love her..."

"..." Shisu's odd teal-colored eyes tore away from the fireflies to look at the kunoichi crouching a couple of yards away. He stared at her for several seconds, and then returned his gaze down to the flittering fireflies when she didn't show any signs of acknowledging his look. "Everyone could tell they loved each other."

Kushina laughed softly and closed her eyes with her head still tilted back. "Yeah... though sometimes that got him into quite a bit of trouble."

"... Like that time he tried to give her a bouquet and ended up practically plucking a whole garden clean?" Shisu asked with a brow quirked, hiding under his moppy black bangs. Kushina stifled a snort and opened her eyes, grinning at the memory and looking down at the older ninja.

"Yeah, I remember that!" The redhaired kunoichi did her best to suppress her snickers, and even covered her mouth so that she wouldn't start laughing. "Okaa-san chased him around the village with a frying pan once she heard."

Shisu snorted at the mental image. "Oh? I wish I saw that... but it just so happened to be my grandmother's garden he cleaned out, so.. I was busy helping her replant flowers." He murmured, raising an arm so that he could rub the back of his neck.

Kushina blinked once, and then twice at his words. "Really?" She asked, and it was clear she had no idea. "Huh..." _Uzu was a lot smaller than Konoha..._ She reminded herself, but she couldn't help herself from chuckling. "Well, sorry Mizuiro-nii did that..."

"Nah." Shisu shrugged and leaned back, flopping onto the ground with a light grunt. He folded his arms beneath his head in a makeshift pillow, closing his eyes as he took a couple of deep breaths. "Grandmother didn't mind. She said it gave her something to do."

"Oh?" Kushina gave a soft smile. "Your grandma was a nice person... Whenever Mizuiro-nii caused trouble, he'd get lectured by okaa-san, whoever he bothered, and sometimes the leader himself." She gave a wary chuckle at the thought. "... But your grandma didn't lecture him or even get mad... I wish I could be more patient like that."

The former Uzu ninja opened his eyes slightly, staring through slitted eyelids before closing them. "You seem pretty patient... Especially, compared to back in the day."

Kushina scoffed at this, but kept silent, allowing him to continue.

"Your brother had quite the influence on you," Shisu paused to open his eyes once more. "... But now, it seems as though you've mellowed out quite a bit."

_Mikoto said the same thing..._ Kushina thought with a couple of blinks. The more she thought about it, she did seem a lot more... wild back then. _Especially_ with Mizuiro and the guys. The kunoichi gave a soft smile at the memories, and finally decided that her legs deserved some rest from crouching all this time, then sat down with a light exhale. It was an obvious sign she was starting to relax, which was improvement considering how wary she had been when she first arrived in the dimly-lit clearing. Of course she would still be a little wary; after all, she didn't trust him as an Iwa ninja.

She only trusted him as an Uzu ninja.

Still, Kushina couldn't help but smile. It was a nice change of pace; talking about all the good memories of her former village, rather than the destruction itself... She supposed it was something she really needed, something she couldn't imagine getting from Daylian since he'd rather leave it behind in the past...

"... Hey, Shisu?"

"...? Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"... No problem."

* * *

**Author(ess)'s Notes:  
Kiki: **The ending of this chapter gave me trouble. It's just one of those times where I know what point A and point B are going to be, but I don't know how to _get to _point B, y'know?

Anyways, to answer a question, I've already begun incorporating some of Kushina's recently revealed traits into the story. Such as, her being a good cook, her motor-mouth (.. well, sorta, but that'll come later on, I promise.), and so forth... Ah, see what I did there? .. Well, with the cooking, anyway. You guys will see her motor-mouth eventually. xP I think it's pretty clever myself, but. Haha, later, later._  
But_ she is _not_ a Jinchuuriki in this fic. It's far too late for me to weave that in. (Plus, I was never keen on her being a Jinchuuriki, anyway.. Sigh. Kishimoto.)

Also, I'm sorry for the delayed update. School is just so... time consuming. Sigh. My writing time was knocked down from twelve hours to three or four. That's so depressing. x.x  
.. Oh, also, I have a new poll up in my profile for you all. I love (and need xD') your guys' opinions, so, if you could check it out, that would be awesome.

I'll try and be quick with the updates, but with school making me all depressed (sigh. xP) it might be a little slow. I hope I have enough of a muse to keep the updates bi weekly or so. x.x See you guys next time!


	34. Far Away

**Chapter XXXIV: Far Away**

Minato knew he'd have to apologize to his students once he got back. Though, he was only going to apologize about running off on a mission at a late notice, rather than the length of the actual job itself; he could already hear Obito demanding why he was away for so long, and Kakashi growling about how the mission was important, and... The blond stopped himself before he could predict the entire scenario. The Jounin sighed and leisurely tossed the small, palm-sized bag of coins up into the air, catching it before tossing it again in an idle manner. The forest path was quiet, and somewhat dark, but the sky in the distance was beginning to glow yellow in the marking of dawn, bringing some light onto Minato's path. A few early birds were rising at the first day light, chirping their friends awake before taking off into the sky, rustling the thin tree branches and shaking the dew off the leaves.

The scenery was peaceful, and Minato enjoyed it while quietly keeping his senses acute; the last thing he wanted was to be ambushed in his home country. He stopped tossing the coin bag into the air and extended his senses, feeling no movement, no chakra flares, no held breaths, nothing, and then resumed himself by chucking the bag up to catch it once more. Every now and then he would break away from his thoughts to make sure he wasn't being followed or about to walk into a trap.

The blond Jounin gave the bag a couple of more bounces, hearing the several coins clinking against each other, as he roughly estimated the amount of money inside. It was certainly a lot, given how weighted it felt even in Minato's hand; he guessed it must have contained close to 10,000 yen. Of course he wouldn't count it so openly out in the country, or much less, his home village, but even then the thought of receiving that much money pleased him.

During his resting duration of the mission, Minato had decided he would move out of his parents' old house, and into a smaller one. So he had started saving up money he received on the mission (although 80 percent of the time it wasn't all that much, since the nation was taxing money to fund the war.), and the blond even sold a couple pieces of furniture to get himself started.

Though he didn't plan on moving until summer, which was still roughly three months away. He just needed to work his way to the different checkpoints he set for himself.

His blue eyes trailed upwards to look up at the brightening sky. Dawn passed- it was time for him to pick up the pace. Minato pocketed the bag of money in a simple motion, adjusted the backpack straps on his shoulders, and then jumped forward in a Shunshin a split second later. Walking in a leisure gait would take him thirty minutes to get back to the village, so he decided to chop those minutes down to 5.

Minato begun to slow his pace as the large, green gates drew closer, and he skidded to a halt so that he could walk briskly into the village. Though something caught his attention just before he could walk through the gates, making him stop and stare down at it. It probably wouldn't have been visible to most others, but he noticed almost immediately, and lowered into a squat so that he could reach out and carefully pick it up with light delicacy. The light scent, almost undetectable, was familiar to him. He carefully held the thin strand of red hair between his fingers, watching as a light breeze threatened to sweep it away. He gave a soft smile, and released the thread-like hair, chuckling softly to himself. _I'll visit her after I report..._

The last word brought him back to reality, and he briskly strode into the village, being sure to give the guard sitting in the gatehouse a nod in acknowledgement. Once the guard returned the curt nod, Minato jumped back into a faster pace and headed straight for the bright red Hokage Tower. He didn't want to keep Sarutobi waiting- he was already gone for a week -and he knew the aging Kage would be anticipating his return.

The blond tilted his head back to look up at the window of the office, finding that it was opened. In swift, agile movements he jumped over the wall surrounding the building perimeter, then onto the wall where he ran up the side of the Tower. He detected no one else in the office, and blurred out of sight in a shunshin to enter through the window, appearing in the middle of the room a second after, lowered onto his knee and into a respectful bow.

"Sandaime-sama, I've returned."

Without raising his head, Minato's blue gaze flickered to see the man through his yellow bangs. Sarutobi looked somewhat startled, but he gave a couple of nods and even pulled his hand away from the piles of paper he was shuffling together to order Minato up from the bow.

"How did the mission go?" Sarutobi asked once the blond Jounin got up to his feet.

"It went well." Minato started as he brushed the dust off his dark navy pants. "I got rid of the assassins and thoroughly searched the entire building and grounds... There were quite a few explosives around, so that took a couple of days." The blond gave a wary sigh, remembering how he had to go into dark and cramped places to search for explosion tags. "I even intercepted the Iwa ninjas from entering the Daimyo's grounds... And I stayed a week like you ordered to watch for any more enemies- there were no signs of them."

"Excellent." Sarutobi smiled upon hearing the succession of the mission, and leaned back in his seat, resting his elbows on the arm rests. "Thank you for taking the mission on such short notice."

"It's no problem, Sandaime-sama." Minato modestly waved his hand, giving a wary smile. After he did this, he slipped the bag off his back and dug through it to pull out a scroll, all while he took a couple of steps forward to approach the desk. "This is from the Daimyo himself..." He murmured, carefully placing the scroll before Sarutobi. The aging Kage nodded.

"Thank you," Sarutobi nodded at this, reaching forward to take the scroll before his black gaze returned to the blond. "And I take it you were treated well during your stay there? I know how some of the younger samurai can act at times..."

"Oh, actually..." Minato blinked as he recalled a small situation with a teenaged samurai. "I met a rather ambitious one who asked me to teach him how to use Shushin no jutsu..."

Sarutobi laughed upon hearing this. "Is that so? Did he bother you the entire time?"

"No... The second time, his father was around, so he got lectured and said sorry." Minato shook his head and rubbed the back of his neck, recalling how awkward it was for the samurai's father to force his son to apologize. He also recalled that it was one of the few days where he actually enjoyed getting out and scouting the grounds... Which was saying something, because it was rather tedious, especially when he had to be ten times as thorough since it involved the Daimyo's safety... "But other than that, things went smoothly."

"Right." Sarutobi's smile vanished as they stopped their simple chit-chat, his mind returning to the more serious manner as he looked down at the scroll, pulling at the string that held it shut. "Excellent job, Minato... You deserve rest after all that. Thank you for your hard work."

Minato returned Sarutobi's nod with one of his own, murmuring his own thanks as well, before he turned on his heels to exit through the door this time. He closed the office door behind him and slipped the bag onto one shoulder, exhaling a breath and then walked down the hall at a comfortable pace. He passed a couple of other ninjas on the way out, but he only gave them a dip of his head, which they returned sharply. He figured the building would be empty, aside from those two, considering how it was still early in the morning.

The sun was in his eyes when he exited the building, forcing him to raise his hand to shield himself from the blinding light. Keeping his hand up to shield his eyes, Minato walked down the steps in silence, lowering his arm when he stepped into the shadows of the taller buildings in the distance. In silence he traversed out of the building's gates and onto the streets, where villagers were already rising to get to work. He would occasionally slow his pace and smile at whoever greeted him, returning a polite 'good morning' before continuing down the path. He only recognized a couple of the people who bade him good morning; they probably remembered him when he was younger, especially when some of the more middle-aged women stopped him and commented on how much he grew since he was so-and-so years old, in which he would reply with modesty.

He guessed it was around 7 by the time he got to Kushina's apartment building, but he only stood next to the garden, wondering to himself if he should go and see if she was even awake. He tilted his head forward, adjusted the bag on his shoulder, then climbed the steps to the second floor. Minato stretched his arms as he approached the door with a few simple strides, exhaling a sigh and raising his hand to knock on the door with his knuckles. Though, the door opened before his knuckle could even connect with the wooden surface, making the blond pull his hand back before it could collide with the Uzu ninja's face.

"She's still sleeping." Daylian leaned against the side of the door, eying the blond before him.

"Oh." Minato gave a slight frown, and figured that the older ninja had scented him approaching. No doubt he was disappointed, but he could come back after dropping off his stuff...

"Yeah... She's been sleeping in until 9 or 10, lately." Daylian commented, rolling his eyes at the thought of how he had to practically drag the kunoichi out of bed at times. "I'm not sure what she does during the day, but it really knocks her out during the night..."

"9 or 10?" Minato echoed before exhaling a soft sigh. So much for coming back right after dropping off his stuff... And he definitely didn't want to wake her up after hearing that she didn't seem to be getting sufficient amount of sleep. He gave a light hang of his head, and raised his hand in a lazy wave. "Well... thanks anyway."

"Try stopping by at noon or something- she'll be awake." Daylian promised, taking half a step outside the apartment as Minato turned to leave. The blond peered over his vest-covered shoulder, and gave an appreciative nod.

"Alright."

"Later." Daylian stifled a yawn, before he retreated back into the apartment and closed the door behind him, leaving Minato to sigh and walk down the steps.

The streets were already starting to bustle with life, but he knew the bulk of the active villagers would be out within the hour, so he decided to avoid them. He jumped onto a rooftop without any effort, traveling at a deliberately slow pace with his hands in his pockets in a relaxed motion. He already knew a couple of ways to pass the time, and he absentmindedly traversed across the rooftops as he organized his morning plans. First things first; he would go home and get something to eat. Sure, he stayed in the Fire Daimyo's palace, but that didn't exactly give him rights to a feast or anything, so he lived off Hyorogan for the most part, and they weren't exactly nutritious.

After another block or so, Minato turned on his heels and launched himself into a jump, easily clearing the distance between the roof he jumped from and onto the one on the other side of the street. He balanced himself as he slid down the tiled roof, touching down on the dirt path with a light grunt. His hand brushed over his dark navy pants to rid it of the dust, before his blue eyes flickered back to the street. His house would be just a couple of minutes away from here...

Minato moved away from the book store he had landed in front of, and as he glimpsed back at it, an idea came to him on how he could kill more time.

_Yeah... That seems like a good idea._ The blond smiled absentmindedly to himself, and then turned his head so that he could face the front, walking around villagers as he made his way home. Minato stepped onto the porch of his simple, two-storied home, and searched himself for the key. He eventually found it in one of the scroll pouches on his Jounin vest, wondering why he stuck it there to begin with, and jiggled the key into the slot on the doorknob.

The house had built up a lot of heat and dust, somehow, during his time away, making Minato cringe at the stuffy air that seemed to hit him as he entered through the front door. As he slipped off his zori, he pondered how dust even managed to collect inside when he made sure to close _all_ the windows, and only groaned, knowing he would have to wipe the floors and so forth. He dumped his bag and zori by the door to hold it open, allowing the cool morning breeze to roll in while he moved to open up some of the windows to quicken the process. As he opened one of the larger windows, a hefty breeze barged into the living room, managing to blow back some of his spiked bangs.

_That felt pleasant._ Minato mused with a soft smile. He turned around and easily crossed the living room with a few strides, grabbing his bag and using his feet to slide the zori across the floor, allowing the wooden door to swing shut with a click. He rested the bag onto his shoulder, carrying it up the stairs while his free hand skillfully undid his hitai-ate, removing it from his forehead and massaging it with the back of his hand. Wearing it for several days straight wasn't exactly comfortable...

Minato nudged the door to his room open with his foot, dumping the pack onto the floor by his closet and spinning right back around to exit the room, realizing out musty the air in there felt. He wrinkled his nose a bit, and trailed back downstairs to fetch himself the meal he wanted, all while folding the cloth around the metal plate of his forehead protector. He jumped the last two steps with a soft grunt, placing his hand on the wall briefly to steady himself before he walked into the kitchen. The blond Jounin tucked his hitai-ate into his weapon pouch to free his hands as he opened the fridge, dipping to peer inside.

_Jam, dried meat, fruits that probably went bad... _Minato frowned as he gingerly reached inside and pulled out an apple, which was noticeably turning an unhealthy brown color. With a flick of his wrist he sent it into the trash can, ignoring the thundering sound the apple made when it hit the bottom. _Vegetables that also went bad._ Minato thought as he tossed the perishing veggies into the trash as well. _Tofu, water, umeboshi... _

Clearly there wasn't much to choose from... How was he still alive, again?

With a sigh, Minato took out the dried meat, tofu and shoyu, using his foot to shut the refrigerator. Placing the items on the counter, the blond reached up to open a cabinet, taking out a plate while his other hand opened a drawer for a pair of chopsticks. As he prepared the light meal for himself, he found himself sighing more and more. He ruffled his bangs in a sort of frustrating, trying to push away the longing feeling he had for some of Kushina's cooking, but only to sigh once more and take his meal out to the dining table.

To make himself more comfortable, he shed the green flak vest, chucking it onto the couch and then settling down into the chair he would always sit in. He stared down at the flimsy meal, with a ticking clock accompanying the silence. The corner of his mouth twitched, and he found himself growing more and more disappointed with the food he layed out for himself.

Knowing himself, he wouldn't eat it if he kept thinking about it, so Minato gingerly picked up the dried meat and bit into it, finding that it required some jaw muscle on his part. His shoulders slumped, but he forced himself to keep eating, well aware that he had to ingest _something_ after living off a chakra replenishing pill for days.

Still, what he was eating was horrible, especially compared to Kushina's meals. Minato leaned back in his seat, absentmindedly gnawing on a piece of meat, that was a little on the tough side, as he imagined he were eating her cooking instead. It didn't exactly work, but it was enough to get him through the mediocre meal.

Minato leaned back to lean against the backrest of his chair, blue eyes staring blankly at the empty plate. With a sigh, he got up then picked up the plate, shoyu bottle and chopsticks, trudging to the kitchen. He wasn't full at all, but it would have to do for now- perhaps he'd go buy ramen with Kushina later.

The blond ran the dish under water, blue eyes trailing over to the window to see if he could estimate the time. It felt as though the minutes were ticking by slowly, and it only made him sigh for the umpteenth time. Once he finished cleaning the dish and chopsticks, he stored them away in their proper place and left the kitchen behind to retreat upstairs. Minato ignored the thin layer of dust that clung to the steps, and glimpsed over at the bathroom as he passed it.

_I need a shower._ He thought as he slipped into his room to retrieve a new set of clothes. Within a minute he was nudging the bathroom door shut with his shoulder and dumping his new set of navy clothes onto the countertop. He reached past the shower curtains and blindly groped for the knob, turning the water on while he discarded his dusty Jounin shirt onto the floor. Blue eyes stared at the dirt on his hands, which was obvious, now that he had his shirt off, and his wrist looking clean compared to it. He scoffed a bit, which was drowned out by the sound of the running water, took off the rest of his clothes, then hopped into the shower and spread the shower curtain so that the water wouldn't escape onto the bathroom floor.

He dipped his head under the shower head, closing his eyes and allowing his hair to get soaked before he shook it out a bit, hearing the water droplets hit the curtain and tiled wall. Minato opened his eyes a bit, and frowned when he found that the water rolling off him and onto the tub floor was a near-transparent brown.

_Ugh._

Protecting the Daimyo and his family had some pros, but there definitely seemed to be a lot more cons; Lack of daily bathing was one of them. Minato would have rolled his eyes if they weren't shut against the shampoo that was trailing down over his eyelids. It wasn't that the lord of the Hi no Kuni was a bad person- he was actually quite an astounding man -it's just that he was too paranoid about his family's well being (as well as his own), even though Minato insisted that the room, building, _and_ grounds were completely safe. So, Minato found himself staying up through the night to patrol for enemies he knew weren't there. He did the patrols so many times that even the samurai were starting to feel sorry for him. All in all, he was glad once a week passed and there were absolutely no signs of any threatening forces.

Minato kept his eyes squeezed shut as he ducked his head under the warm water, letting the bubbles rinse out of his yellow hair. He thought about taking a nap, but he knew that he would sleep half the day away and then have trouble sleeping later at night. And he definitely didn't want to be awake at the early morning hours.

_I'll go to the training grounds. Train if Kakashi guys are there, or just read._ Minato was expecting the latter to happen, considering the time. Normally he met his students closer to the twelve-o-clock hour, so they developed the habit of meeting him there at the time. ... Well, with the exception of Obito, who was usually ten minutes late.

The blond shifted on his feet so that he could stand under the water and rinse off the bubbling soap on his body, tilting his head back slightly and holding his breath. After a while he exhaled and reached forward to turn the knob, shaking his head wildly to rid it of the excess water drops.

"Phew." Minato breathed as he pushed the curtains open, ruffling his hair to begin dampening it while his free hand reached out for a towel on the nearby rack.

He definitely felt a lot more awake and refreshed; he felt a lot more at ease than he was earlier. The blond quickly dried himself off, slipping on his navy clothes and putting the towel over his head so that he could ruffle it damp. He gathered his dirty clothes then used his foot to pull the door open, letting the warm air out as he trailed into the hallway and into his room, where he dumped the laundry into the small hamper by his closet. He tossed his weapon pouch into the air, catching it jadedly while his blue eyes trailed over to the clock on his nightstand.

7:57 am.

Minato successfully managed to kill 57 minutes, how great. He sighed a bit and stuck his weapon pouch onto his lower back, deciding to go casual for the time being. He lowered into a squat so that he could pull the bag on the ground into an upright position, opening it and digging through the contents to retrieve something. He pulled out a small book shortly after, putting it aside while he emptied out the contents of his bag; which included a change of clothes (he threw it into the hamper without giving it another look), several numbers of his Hiraishin kunais, shuriken, smoke bombs, a bag of Hyorogan, a bamboo water canteen he never ended up using, and so forth. Leaning forward, he opened the closet and threw the empty bag inside, gathering the stuff to put them away.

Once he got everything sorted and away, he bent over to pick up the book he had left on the ground, storing it in the beige pouch on his lower back. Minato stretched his arms while his blue eyes assessed his room, content with how it was despite the fact that he knew the floor was covered in a light film of dirt. He spun on his heels, and exited the room, trailing down the hall and back into the bathroom. He quickly ruffled his hair with the towel that was on his head, pulling the cotton cloth away and hanging it on the rack to dry. The blond felt his hair, which was still slightly damp, and knew that it would dry on his way to the training grounds.

He headed down stairs and closed the windows, leaving a couple of inches open to let air circulate, and then grabbed his key and left the house.

Like he predicted, the larger bulk of villagers were already starting to walk throughout the streets, moving to go shopping or get to work, or whatever they did during times like these. Minato figured that majority of them were trying to ignore the war, and only concerned themselves if the enemies got _inside_ the village walls.

Well, he couldn't exactly blame them.

Minato walked further away from the main crowd, hands in his pockets as he smiled and exchanged an occasional greeting to someone he recognized and even to people who were just being friendly and bid good morning. He walked at a leisure pace; letting his hair dry in the sunlight and just enjoying being back in the village, really.

He made his way out into the more quiet part the busy streets, which eventually took him onto the dirt path that led into the forest, the rest of the village seeming to vanish as he was suddenly surrounded by trees on both sides. The bustling sounds were left behind, being replaced with the chirping of birds and leaves rustling whenever a breeze rolled by. His blue gaze rolled upwards when he sensed that he was about to approach the old gate that kept villagers out of the training grounds. Minato took one step and was suddenly on the other side of the rackety iron fence, sliding a hand out of his pocket to brush some dust off his shoulder and ruffling his dried hair, which went back to its usual business of defying gravity.

He stopped for several seconds when he heard what sounded like shouting, either that or really spirited talking, and tried to identify the owner of the voice. No one came to mind, which perked his curiosity, so he quietly walked deeper into the grounds, pausing at the edge of the huge clearing where the stream and three stumps were.

Minato spotted Kakashi right away, but he didn't recognize the second ninja- who was the source of the loud... arguing, which Minato found out.

"Come on, Kakashi! At least play rock-paper-scissors! If I win, we do my contest, and if you win, I'll leave you alone for a week!" Minato had no idea who this ninja was, but he knew that he would be able to recognize the younger ninja immediately if he ever saw him again. For one thing, the younger ninja- clearly to be Kakashi's age -was sporting a green spandex jumpsuit or some sort, with his arms and knuckles wrapped tightly in bandages and a red-clothed hitai-ate tied around his waist like a belt that wasn't necessary. Another instantly recognizable trait was the rather glossy looking bowl-cut, and for the briefest of seconds Minato wondered how the young boy kept his hair shiny like that.

But, to top it all off, the boy had the thickest set of eyebrows Minato ever saw. And that was saying something, considering he could see them from where he stood.

Kakashi only rolled his eyes at the other nin, folding his arms and deciding to turn around to give the cold shoulder. Mid-spin, he spotted an unforgettable blond, and stopped before he could completely turn around, moving forward to approach his sensei.

"Hey, come on! It's a fifty-fifty chance, Kakashi!" The spandex-clad ninja called after him. Kakashi only promptly ignored him, stopping a couple of paces in front of Minato.

"Sensei." He greeted in his usual tone, which was accompanied by a slight nod. The blond Jounin could only glimpse back at the other genin, before nodding a bit.

"Sorry for taking off a week ago." Minato chuckled a bit and rubbed the back of his neck. "It turned out to be a pretty important mission."

"Then there isn't any reason to apologize." Kakashi shrugged nonchalantly, ignoring the calls that were directed to him. Minato looked back at the third person in the training grounds.

"Is that your friend?"

"I'd hardly call him that."

"..." Minato absentmindedly scratched his head lightly, while he tried to figure out the situation. He remained where he was, although Kakashi shifted to move as soon as he sensed the green-clad ninja approach. Of course, the silver-haired genin was stopped by a hand on his shoulder.

"Just where are you headed, hm? I still think my deal sounds fair to me!"

Minato refrained from wincing at the volume. _And I thought Obito was loud..._

Kakashi exhaled an audible huff as he tried to shrug off the hand on his shoulder, his head turned so that he wouldn't have to look at the other ninja, who looked at the blond.

"Oh! Pardon me, sensei!" While keeping his hand on Kakashi's shoulder, the spandex-clad ninja dropped into a near 90-degrees bow, startling Minato. "My name is Maito Gai!"

_Maito... Gai?_ The genin certainly had a comical name to go along with his... questionable look. But before Minato could speak, Gai continued his rather spirited babbling.

"I'm honored to be in the presence of the man who taught my rival!" Gai used his free hand to clench a bandaged fist tightly at chest level. "You've taught him well! You have that same coolness and passed it onto him! But, he does get a bit cocky at times!" He laughed uproariously, unclenching his fist and placing it on his hip. "But-! That only fires me up more! Just like how he's firing me up just by trying to sneak away!" Gai raised the volume of his voice as he neared the end of his sentence, turning his head so that he was practically yelling at Kakashi.

"... A..hahaha..." Minato could only laugh nervously and nod as Gai continued spouting about their 'rivalry', occasionally turning to lecture Kakashi on something about being more youthful, and even bowing numerous times to thank him for training the silver-haired genin. The blond started nodding sub-consciously, and realized that he had nodded a yes to Gai's question, a second too late.

"See! Your sensei said you should, so you should! Ready?" Gai released Kakashi's shoulder and assumed a sort of stance, pulling his hand back and balling it into a fist. Kakashi gave a roll of his eyes and turned to face his self-proclaimed rival, being sure to eye Minato, and warily prepared himself for the match of rock-paper-scissors.

"First is rock!" Gai barked as they both shook their fists twice. "Jan-"

"Ken-" The two started dropping their fists, preparing to either change or keep their hand to rock.

"Po!" Gai stared down at the result; his hand was opened wide to represent paper, while Kakashi lazily kept his hand balled into a fist. Minato immediately saw Kakashi stiffen, before the younger ninja's shoulders slumped. Meanwhile, Gai was pumping his fist into the air, grinning widely and then yammering, mostly to himself, on what the challenge should be.

"Oh, maybe, a few laps around the village- no, wait! Push-ups! Yeah!"

"Push-ups?" Kakashi echoed warily, a brow raising and disappearing under the hitai-ate around his forehead.

"1000 push-ups!"

_Oh my god._ Minato had stopped himself from speaking his thoughts, and instead he widened his blue eyes in surprise. _That's... pretty extreme..._

"What the hell, you bumped it up another 500 since last time." Kakashi growled, though he irritably followed Gai out into the clearing. The other ninja was already in the starting position, head tilted back so that he could grin up at his rival.

"It's more fun this way! A true challenge! Whoever drops first, loses!" Gai only continued to grin as he watched Kakashi lowered onto the ground, keeping himself upright with his arms. Their two gazes met, before Gai called for them to start, which they did.

Much to Minato's surprise, both of them started off at a ridiculously fast pace- probably just fanning each other's flames, he thought -and scratched his head when Gai counted 20, _already._ He shifted on his feet and scanned the area, before he took a couple of steps to his left so that he was in front of a tree trunk, sitting down and then reaching behind him to pull out the book he had brought with him.

"I'll be over here if you guys need anything!" Minato called as he cupped his mouth.

"Ossu! We have an audience, Kakashi! A witness, if you may, for when I beat you!" Gai laughed uproariously, and even _quickened_ his pace, if that was even possible. Kakashi only snorted from where he was doing his sets of push-ups, not bothering to look up as he continued to do so.

"Right..." Minato leaned back against the tree, making himself comfortable in the shade as he opened the small book, ignoring Gai's counting that was already starting to fade into the background. He turned to the page he recalled leaving off on, although it probably didn't matter, considering he already read the book once before; But it was just interesting enough to read a second time. He stifled a yawn, and allowed his eyes to roll up and down the pages.

* * *

He stirred a bit and slowly opened his eyes, his mind already beginning to process the fact that he had nodded off whilst he was reading. His hands were on the grass by his sides, the book closed and resting on his lap. Minato leaned forward so that he was no longer leaning against the tree, feeling his spine popping as he slowly straightened himself. The blond grimaced a bit and then tilted his head back, knowing well that it had probably fallen forward in his sleep. Surely enough, the bones in his neck released a couple of popping sounds, indicating that he had slumped forward during his nap.

As Minato slowly twisted to stretch himself, he noticed two of his students lying down on both sides of him; Obito was to the right and sleeping on his back, arms folded under him in a makeshift pillow. The genin's hitai-ate and goggles were covered his eyes, but Minato could tell by his even breathing that Obito was asleep. To his left was Rin, who was a couple of inches away from Minato's legs, curled up on her side and an arm under her head to make herself comfortable. The blond leaned forward, resting his elbows on his legs as he angled himself to see if the kunoichi was asleep. She didn't move, except for her waist rising and falling in soft breathing, so he knew she was sound asleep. Minato extended his arm and carefully pulled back a lock of her bang that had fallen over her face, withdrawing his hand slightly when she stirred a bit. He stared at the kunoichi and softly smiled, before he swiveled his head back to the front to see if Kakashi and Gai were still going at it.

Their pace had slowed drastically, and Minato could see the two of them trembling as they lowered down into one more push up. The blond guessed they must have nearly hit the 1000 marker. He listened carefully to Gai's counting, which also dropped in volume.

"980..." Gai's voice sounded strained, and Minato wasn't surprised. From where he was seated, he could tell their breathing was labored, and even pushing themselves upright was a difficult task. Slowly, they lowered themselves so that they were an inch above the ground, their arms visibly shaking. "981..."

"..." Minato quietly wondered to himself if he should stop the two. It wouldn't go well if both of them suffered injuries because of their stubbornness. Not to mention that he would get chewed out by whomever Gai's sensei was if that did happen. He sighed and ruffled his hair, debating on the two choices. He didn't want them to get hurt, but at the same time, they were so close to finishing...

"... Are they still going at it?" A drowsy voice to his right asked. Minato turned his head slightly and watched as Obito sat up, pushing his goggles and hitai-ate away from his eyes to rub them. He smacked his lips a bit, opening his other eye to look at the two. "... Man, they're insane."

"I wouldn't call them insane." Minato murmured as he returned his gaze back to the 'rivals'. "... And when did you and Rin get here?" He asked.

"Oh." Obito looked around for a bit, assessing the shadows to see how much they had moved. "I guess an hour ago."

Minato blinked and jumped slightly, looking at the young Uchiha. "An hour? What time did you guys show up?"

"We didn't know you were back, so we decided to show up a little earlier, at 10, to get some training, but then we saw you sleeping and those two doing their business, so..." Obito stifled a yawn. "We sat down over here to watch them, but I guess we ended up falling asleep..."

_I fell asleep for four hours..._ Minato stopped himself from frowning. He figured a couple of hours of training would make him just tired enough to sleep properly through the night.

"Oi, sensei, when did you get back, anyway? Today?"

"This morning." Minato answered as he looked back at his student, leaning against the tree trunk as he relaxed himself.

"I'm guessing the mission was tough, huh?" Obito straightened himself and stretched his arms. "Because you were _knocked out_. We even called your name a couple of times but you didn't budge."

"... Is that so?" Minato chuckled a bit in embarrassment. He probably should have taken a nap at home before coming here... "I'm sorry. I didn't get much sleep on the mission."

"What was it like?" Obito grinned a bit, placing his hands back on the ground as he looked at his blond teacher. "What did you have to do?"

"... That's mostly classified information, but it involved the Hi no Kuni's Daimyo."

"Whoa, no way!" Obito sounded flabbergasted upon hearing this, his eyes wide and his mouth hanging open. Slowly, he started grinning. "Hey, you think I can do important missions like that someday?"

Minato blinked from where he was staring at Kakashi and Gai, then turned his head to look back at his eager student. He couldn't stop himself from smiling at Obito's excited expression, and even chuckled a bit. "Sure! You just have to remember what I teach you, alright?"

"Ossu!"

"Nnn, Obito you're too loud..." Rin mumbled as she pushed herself upright, blinking away the drowsiness before she turned her head, realizing that Minato was awake. "Oh... sensei... You're up..."

The blond Jounin chuckled and reached out to flick away some grass blades that stuck to her brown hair. "Sorry for not waking up when you guys got here..."

Rin smiled and adjusted her legs so that she could sit comfortably. "It's no problem; you looked peaceful so I didn't want to bother you... But..." She raised a hand to nibble nervously on an index finger, her chocolate-brown eyes slowly sliding over to the third member of their team. Minato and Obito easily followed her gaze.

"They're almost done. But you should check and make sure they didn't damage their arms." Minato murmured, focusing to catch the number Gai managed to gasp out.

"995..."

"Insane." Obito snorted as he folded his arms behind his head in an apathetic manner. He shrugged a bit and stifled a third yawn. "I can't believe they're doing 1000 push-ups. What time did they start, anyway?"

"8'o-clock." Minato replied simply, shifting to get up onto his feet. He placed a hand on the tree bark to steady himself, feeling the blood rushing back down to his legs and making him feel slightly strained. Once he felt the slight aching vanish, he approached the two, hearing Rin scurry along behind him while Obito got up at a slower pace.

Gai laughed weakly when he saw them approaching, pushing himself upright. "998... I'm sorry I... took your student... away for a... while, sensei. ...This took... a lot longer than I... expected..." He gasped out.

"It's no problem. Now come on, are you two going to let this end in a draw, after coming so far?"

"...!" Kakashi and Gai both looked at each other in unison, eyes narrowing slightly. They both dropped into another push up, but struggled to push themselves upright. Minato counted at least ten seconds to do so. Though, Gai's arms gave out under him and he collapsed to the ground with a loud grunt. Kakashi heavily dropped his knees to the ground upon seeing this, his arms giving out and making him rest on his forearms, gasping for breath.

"Idiots." Obito muttered with a roll of his eyes, although it was drowned out by Rin's worried cry. The kunoichi quickly moved past Minato, lowering down to gingerly place a hand on Kakashi's arm.

"Are you two alright?"

"Daaaaaaammit!" Gai was suddenly sitting upright on his knees, throwing his head back dramatically as he yelled out. "I lost! But not next time, Kakashi!" He swung around to point at his rival, but instead dropped his arms, shoulders rising and falling as he panted.

"Give me a break." Kakashi growled, his voice sounding raspy. "Leave me alone- I need to catch up on my training."

"That is no way to act in our youth, Kakashi! We're only young once!"

_... He talks like an old man, spouting about being youthful like that._ Minato mused with a soft chuckle. "You two should rest up, but what you guys did was pretty ridiculous, I'll admit." Minato could hear Obito snort from where the young Uchiha stood next to him. "Just take it easy next time, and slowly build to higher numbers."

"... Hai, sensei." Gai dropped his head, almost in a shameful movement.

"..." Minato only chuckled. "After you guys get examined by Rin and rested up, we'll train a bit. You're more than welcome to join us, Gai."

"No." Kakashi and even Obito growled simultaneously, both of them looking at their blond sensei. Gai raised his head and laughed a few times.

"Thanks, sensei, but I'm alright!" As if to prove his point, Gai jumped to his feet, much to the team's surprise. The young ninja placed his hands on his hips and laughed uproariously. "The power of youth is giving me energy!"

"But-"

"Sorry to keep you guys from your training! I shall go, now! Don't expect me to back off for long, Kakashi!" Gai pointed down at the exhausted genin, trying to facade his own. "This loss has only made me more determined!"

"Yeah, yeah, just get out of here already." Kakashi growled, ignoring Rin as she carefully examined his tired arms. Gai only brushed off the rude comment with a laugh, and charged off past Minato and Obito. The blond pocketed his hands and half-turned to watch Gai run off, Obito doing the same. The poor green-clad ninja stumbled and nearly fell over, but he quickly regained his balance and continued to take off.

"... How did you two meet again?" Obito asked to break the silence that followed, a brow raised as he continued to stare at the direction Gai had vanished to.

"Academy. He won't stop bothering me." Kakashi growled, getting to his feet with Rin's help. Minato could tell by the way he slouched that the silver-haired genin was just exhausted. He gave a wary smile, and took a couple of steps backwards to guide them back over to the shade of the trees.

"Come on, you need to rest, Kakashi. And if you're up to it later, we'll train a bit... Though I'm not exactly dressed for the part..." Minato's blue eyes trailed down at the Jounin attire he wore, and remembered leaving his flak vest back at home.

"We'll see..." Kakashi grumbled as he was helped to the trees, lowering to sit down on the cool grass and exhaling deeply. He rubbed his shoulder painfully, black eyes blank as he stared at nothing in particular.

Minato tilted his head forward, and then chuckled. "You're probably dehydrated- I'll run and go get us all some water, how does that sound?"

"Pleasant." Kakashi mumbled, snapping out of his short daze to look up at his sensei.

"Yeah, I'm pretty thirsty too." Obito piped.

Minato smiled at the three of them, and nodded. "Alright, then. Rest here and I'll be back in a bit."

"Take your time," Kakashi mumbled warily. "Because I know you'll be back in a minute if you don't. I'd like a little more time to rest than that."

The blond laughed a bit, because he knew it was true. "Alright, alright. Obito, behave, got it?"

"Wh, what the hell, why'd you say that?" Obito sputtered and frowned. He huffed a bit and folded his arms, looking away as he started a silent tantrum, puffing his cheeks slightly. Minato grinned and placed a hand on the Uchiha's black haired head, patting it a couple of times.

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding. But, really, I'll be back in a bit." Minato smiled at the three of them, and then turned around, hands in his pockets as he vanished from the training grounds. He slowed his pace a bit, remembering what Kakashi said, and chuckled warily. Though his soft laughing trailed off when he remembered a certain someone.

_Kushina._

"..." Minato had to snap himself out of his thoughts, finding that he had almost stopped walking in the middle of the street. He exhaled an inaudible sigh, one through the nose, and shook his head a bit. _I'm sure Daylian will tell her I stopped by. And she might stop by if she's not busy..._ His thoughts trailed off a bit, and he almost forgot what he was supposed to be doing. Minato forced himself to grin, trying to keep his attitude positive.

_And if she can't visit today, then I'll just visit her tomorrow. Yeah._ Minato's grin slowly toned down into a soft smile, before he throatily chuckled and continued down the streets to go purchase the water he had promised his students.

* * *

**Author(ess)'s Notes:  
Kiki: **10,000 yen is roughly 120 USD.

I'm sorry if this chapter seemed so dreadfully slow and boring at some parts. It was kinda what I was aiming for... Haha. Because, y'know, when you're away from the person you love, time goes by so slowly. ;o;

And, c'mon guys, go check out the poll and vote. xD I know there's more than 9 of you watching this fic. :U

But, sorry for the late update, guys. School is just so.. tiring. Algebra 2 is kicking my ass, and this project (that is required to graduate. -.-) is just infuriating. u.u'

... Oh! And another note- I bumped up the rating because of future language and... stuff. -cough- .. And I found out that they removed the T+ rating and just mashed it with M. Clearly, I don't pay attention. Sigh. But, yeah. Just a heads up for you all.

Drop a review- tell me what you think of the chapter, the story, so forth. I'd like to know if I'm still doing good or not. xD'  
Again, sorry for the late update.


	35. Missing You

**Chapter XXXV: Missing You**

The breeze that rolled past him was nice and cool, to be expected at the altitude, but he barely took notice. His eyes, blank and even looking a bit pale, stared out at the village, looking at nothing in particular. He sat in a type of fetal position; arms folded on top of the knees that were brought up to chest level, and buried the lower half of his face in his arms. It felt as though there was some sort of weight in his chest, dragging him down emotionally and practically physically as well. The number of sighs he exhaled was probably in the thousands, and each passing day the numbers seemed to grow larger.

His eyelids slowly closed and then opened in a sloth like blink.

He hated this. He hated how he felt so down, and how he couldn't help himself.

Yesterday, he found out that his two teammates, the ones from his time under Jiraiya's tutelage, were killed in the war.

It felt as though reality kept punching him in the gut, like it was constantly reminding him that he was a _shinobi_, that shinobi were nothing but tools used in warfare and how easily they could be discarded. According to that infamous handbook, his emotions shouldn't be getting to the best of him, that feelings should be suppressed for the sake of the mission.

"..." Minato sighed for the thousandth time, and tilted his head forward to bury his face in his arms. If only the shinobi world weren't so harsh... Another sigh rolled off his tongue, this time accompanied by the rise and fall of his shoulders. Just about every ninja knew of their own reality, one that regular civilians or nobles could never possibly understand; they were human, they had emotions too, even _if _they were trained in the art of killing and emotion-suppression. Minato raised his head a bit so that he could blankly stare out at the vast village before him. He would be looked down upon for being sad like this, especially since he was an ex-Anbu black ops member.

The corner of his mouth twitched.

Anbu... Never again. Mentally, he wasn't made for the black operations. If he had the mentality, along with his undeniable skills, he could have easily climbed the ranks. But, he didn't, and that was the fact, and one of the many reasons why he quit after a few months. His thoughts paused for a second.

He had enough mentality to wipe out hundreds of opposing shinobi all at once, but not enough to deal with the harsh missions that were given out only to those of Anbu rank. Yeah, that was it. An old conversation popped into his head, one from back when he was still with team Jiraiya, on how far each of them would go. Both Shoumaru and Kuria agreed that Minato would be a Jounin in no time, but...

_"You're just too nice to be in Anbu, y'know? I mean, I've seen those guys up close and... and it's all serious business. I mean, geez you're even grinning like an idiot right now and proving that you can't be in the black ops, hahaha!" _

Minato wasn't surprised that he could remember the conversation so clearly; he figured that all the memories of his teammates were coming back to them, now that they were gone. The same thing happened when he lost his parents, too.

He exhaled another deep sigh. He only wished he could have at least spent some time with them before they vanished... And the more he thought about it, the more he realized how many years it's been since he had seen either of them, only making him feel more remorseful.

Reality was harsh.

He knew that, indeed, time would heal the wounds, but it usually seemed like there wasn't much ways to ease the pain _while_ time droned agonizingly slow.

It didn't help that it felt as though the days were going by even more lethargically without Kushina.

Minato squeezed his eyes shut this time, feeling a throbbing pain in his chest. The last time he saw her was two weeks and 3 days ago... and counting. Damn, he missed her dearly... He missed talking to her, laughing with her, holding her... The blond forced back a tear that was trying to battle its way out.

It was only two weeks, but it felt like she was already gone for practically a year, like when she left on the long-term mission with Daylian a few years ago- No. It felt like when he was back in Anbu and away from the village, away from Kushina, for months, but 10 times worse.

With each day he didn't see her, the more he realized how much she meant to him, and how much she made him feel whole; It felt as though there were a piece of him missing... He hated the hollow feeling it created in his chest.

"Arghhh!" Minato wildly ruffled his spiked yellow hair with both of his hands. All of these emotions were just so overwhelming and even starting to become _frustrating_. He _hated _this. It was moments like these where he wished he had better control over his feelings...

He took a couple of breaths to try and calm himself as a first step. He still felt small twinges of sadness and even bits of irritation, but for now it would have to do.

Blue eyes trailed out to the village. Perhaps a walk around would keep his mind off things. Maybe even a trip to the library would help; he was in need of a new book anyway.

_A book will definitely get my mind off all this..._ Minato agreed to his thoughts and turned on his heels. He walked away from the edge of the cliff, and towards the steep set of stairs that would take him back down to the village's regular elevation. The blond ignored the winds that were gusting at him, and trailed down the stairs with some caution. Occasionally he was forced to close his eyes against the drafts that blew against the side of the cliff, and place his hand along the rock face to keep himself from stumbling down the steps.

Slowly he descended, and jumped the last few steps to the ground. The blond brushed himself off as he walked around the perimeter of the Hokage tower- which was where the stairs were located -and frowned when he found that the wind had blown quite a layer of dirt onto him. He continued to pat himself down, exhaling a soft sigh at the small puffs of dust that would fly off as he did. He deemed himself decently clean and continued his walk, but found himself struggling to keep the more painful thoughts at bay.

Minato closed his eyes and slipped his hands into his pockets, trying to physically convince himself that he was fine. But when a rogue sigh escaped him, he slouched a bit as he walked.

_Might as well head straight to the library..._ He thought with another silent sigh. He was about to jump off into a shunshin, but a voice stopped him,

"Hey! Minato!"

It sounded familiar to him, so he straightened himself and turned around, only to get an arm slung over his shoulder in a friendly gesture.

"It's been a long time!" The large man grinned a bit as he spoke. "We haven't been on any missions together for.. I dunno, a couple of years it feels like!"

"It has been a while," Minato agreed with the man, giving a wary smile. "Did the three of you just get back from a mission?"

"Mhm. Shikaku's got another scar to show off." Inoichi snorted a bit, and was responded with a long, dragging sigh from the third member of their team. Minato turned his head and saw that the Shikaku's lower right cheek was covered with a simple white bandage.

"I don't 'show off' my scars." The Nara clansman protested with a mutter.

"Don't lie! I bet you brag about them to a certain girl!" Chouza still had his arm around Minato's shoulders, so the Akimichi's loud voice nearly made the blond wince. The corner of Minato's mouth twitched, and he held back a sigh. _Kushina..._

"Do not." Shikaku growled, this time rolling his eyes. He walked past the three, rubbing the back of his neck as he leisurely strolled down the street. "Geez."

"Hahaha, no need to be grumpy!" Chouza laughed and withdrew his arm to walk after his teammate. "You'll see her soon enough!"

"Come! Walk with us, it's been too long." Inoichi grinned as he patted Minato heavily on the shoulder two times, ushering the spikey-haired blond to walk along side of him.

"But.. I wouldn't want to bother... You guys just got back from a mission, after all." Minato replied modestly, his head turned so that his blue eyes could look over at his comrade. "And Shikaku's injured.."

"It's just a scratch," Inoichi waved his hand in a nonchalant motion. "And we're fine. It was just recon. Ran into someone scouting- that's how he got the scratch -and we took care of 'im. The rest of the mission was pretty uneventful, so we're not tired at all."

Minato fell silent, but he slowly nodded. Hopefully talking to his friends would keep his mind preoccupied...

"So, how has life been treating you, Minato?"

_So much for that._ Minato couldn't help but deadpan slightly, and exhaled a sigh. He raised his hand to rub the back of his neck, the corner of his mouth twitching into a slight frown.

"It could be a _lot_ better." He confessed, closing his eyes as another sigh escaped him. Inoichi stared at his bright-blond friend. He didn't need to be a genius to know that Minato was pretty down, but he _did_ have to be a ninja to understand how they had to suppress their emotions and deal with it, which he was.

"Want to talk about it?" Inoichi offered, placing a hand on Minato's shoulder.

"..." Minato actually thought about it for several seconds, unsure if he should be rude and dump his problems onto his comrade like that. He was torn; he wanted to get it off his chest, but at the same time it didn't seem very... he wasn't even sure how to describe it, _professional_? _Mature_? As he was wracking his brain for the right word, Inoichi patted him on his vest-covered shoulder.

"Well, it's alright if you don't want to." Inoichi shrugged his own shoulders. "Just thought I'd lend an ear... Well, unless you're the type who's too conscious to vent, and rather answer questions."

"I think he's that type, Inoichi!" Chouza called from where he was waiting a few steps ahead, turned around so that he could face the slower two. Shikaku was waiting next to him, but he kept facing the front with his hands in his pockets, prepared to resume walking once his third teammate got close enough.

"..." Minato only embarrassingly looked away, questioning himself if they were right. It took quite a bit of memory-digging, but he did recall a few times Jiraiya had pryed the answers out of him. Of course, the one Minato remembered most clearly was when Jiraiya was guessing who he liked...

A pat to his shoulder snapped him out of his thoughts, his blue eyes shooting back to the trio, and he immediately realized that Inoichi had asked him a question. Of course, Minato wasn't paying attention, so he only blinked slowly in silence. Inoichi stared back, and slowly a look of understanding became visible in his eyes.

".. Does it have to do with that girl...? Uh... Forgive me, her name always slips. Uzu...maki?" Inoichi attempted to repeat the question, but scratched his head as he tried to recall a certain redhead's name.

"Uzumaki, I'm sure." Shikaku murmured from where he stood.

"... For the most part.. yeah." Minato sighed and hung his head a bit, fessing up to the three as they all started walking down the street again. He heard the Yamanaka hum a bit, as if he were thinking.

"I'm fairly certain you two didn't break it off... Otherwise we would have heard about it... right?"

"Oh yeah, we definitely would." Chouza dipped his head into a few nods of agreement, rubbing his chin as he thought along with his teammate.

"..." Minato could only awkwardly give a half-hearted nod. The more they guessed, the more he wanted to vanish and run off to the library... But, he knew that would be rude, especially since they were trying to help him out. And, who knew, maybe he _would_ feel a bit better after their talking.

"Mm, then that leaves just one answer," Inoichi hummed. His head was tilted back slightly to stare up at the sky, as if gazing at it would help him find the solution. "You haven't seen her for a while."

"... Yeah." Minato answered softly, his own gaze still adverted from theirs. He felt an arm sling around the back of his neck and onto his shoulder, his yellow-framed peripherals telling him that it was Shikaku.

"We're in the same boat, Minato." The Nara clansman yawned as he spoke, muffling his words slightly. "The missions've been keeping you apart, huh?" When the blond nodded, Shikaku carried on.

"I know exactly how you feel, and quite frankly I don't like the feeling either," Shikaku used his free hand to jab Minato in the chest with his thumb. The blond Jounin didn't even wince, and instead turned his head slightly so that he could look at Shikaku. "I haven't seen my chick for a while, too. But, y'know, I've had a lot of times like these."

"Is that so..."

"And you know what I realized?" Shikaku growled as he jabbed his thumb roughly into Minato's chest once more, forcing a near-inaudible 'what?' from the blond. "That when you see her after these periods of being apart... well, it's worth the wait."

_It's worth the wait._ Minato blinked slowly as Shikaku's words plucked at his heartstrings.

During Kushina's long-term mission away from the village, he had sulked a number of times, but when she came back it... he completely forgot about all of his sad moments, because he was just happy to see her back after the time apart. It was the same when he was drafted into Anbu as well- his heart probably would have burst from the sheer joy of being able to hold Kushina again.

Who was he to say it wouldn't be the same this time?

A slow smile started to stretch itself across Minato's face, and before he knew it, he found himself grinning.

"You're right...! I shouldn't be sulking around like this..!"

"Because when you see her, it won't matter." Shikaku finished with a firm nod. He removed his arm from around Minato's shoulders and dropped it back down to his side, unable to keep himself from smiling a bit at the blond's much happier expression.

"Thanks, Shikaku." Minato lauded with his grin still plastered on his features. His blue eyes flickered to the other two, and he dipped himself forward in a slight bow. "You guys too. Thank you."

Inoichi offered a polite smile and then shook his head, waving his hand back and forth in an 'it was nothing' sort of motion. Chouza laughed a bit, clearly glad that their comrade was feeling better.

"It's no problem! Besides, we've all been friends since the Academy days! It's only natural to help eachother out!" The large red-haired man explained. Minato smiled at his friends, glad that they had come along when they did. Knowing himself, he would have gone to the library, get temporarily distracted, and continue sulking afterwards...

"Really, thank you guys." Minato chuckled a bit softly. "And.. I'm sorry you had to see me like that."

"It's no problem, no problem at all!" Chouza placed a large hand on Minato's shoulder, grinning. Shortly after, his happy feature started vanishing, and he even whirled Minato around to make him face a different street as the group slow to a stop at a crossroad. "Now, um. I didn't mention this earlier, because.. Well, because of the mood you were in, but..."

"But...?" Minato repeated the last word curiously, looking over his shoulder and at the tall man before he looked down the street he was forced to face. His mind travelled down the path, thinking of all the different locations he could end up at. As Chouza was explaining in the background, the blond had a pretty good idea of what was going to be said.

"... And, well. Jiraiya-sama was doing his usual... well, _you know_. And I didn't want to just stop him, because I've witnessed what he does when someone tries to interrupt him-"

"I understand, Chouza." Minato's shoulders rose and fell in sync with his sigh. Nevertheless, he was still smiling, but it wasn't as bright as it was a few seconds ago- more than likely because he had to go get fetch his former teacher. "I should go get him. And.. thanks, again."

"Anytime! If you ever need to talk, even if it's just some idle chat, we'll be around." Inoichi grinned slightly. Minato looked back at the three and gave them a dip of his head, smiling at them before he turned to jog down the street Chouza directed him to.

All he had to do was walk a few yards, and then travel up the alley about a block or so in the direction of the Hokage Monuments. A sort of U shape, to put it simply.

He turned sharply on his heels to walk down the alley, blue eyes looking ahead. He could already see the small, bright-red bridge he would have to cross to reach the hot springs vicinity. ... And as he got closer, he could see a white-haired man crouching with his face practically pressed up against the wooden fence. Minato rolled his eyes, and did a light Shunshin across the alley, stopping at the small bridge. He crossed it with a few simple strides, glimpsing down at the steaming water that ran beneath it. Turning his head back to the front, the blond immediately closed the distance between himself and his sensei, abruptly putting a foot heavily on the crouching ninja's back.

A second later, Minato pushed off Jiraiya's back to jump up and avoid the sweeping kick, taking half a step back as he landed back on the ground. Jiraiya was glaring up at him, though his expression lightened slightly when he saw who it was.

"... Oh."

"It's nice to see you too, sensei." Minato snorted at his reaction, but offered a light grin. Jiraiya heaved a sigh, turning on the balls of his feet so that he could face the fence again.

"C'mon, just a little bit more, Minato. There's a really busty babe and she's gonna get out soon." The white-haired pervert grumbled, placing his palms flat on the wooden fence as he peered into the small hole. Jiraiya nearly gagged as he was yanked by the back of his Jounin undershirt, flailing his arms.

"Aww, come on!" Jiraiya attempted to struggle for a second, but gave up shortly after, slumping as Minato dragged him away from the wooden fence and towards the decorative bridge. His lower lip was jutted out to show his disappointment, and he folded his arms as his heels dug in slightly.

"Sensei, you're heavy." A second after Minato finished his sentence, he released his hold of Jiraiya's clothing, making the white-haired Sennin flail his arms before hitting the ground. Jiraiya grumbled from where he was now seated on the cobble-stone ground, rubbing his lower back as he remained where he was.

"You're gentle as ever, 'Nato." Jiraiya growled a bit, and then decided to push himself up to his feet, rubbing his sore bottom. "Who told you?"

"Chouza." Minato replied nonchalantly, his arms folded across his chest by the time Jiraiya got up. The blond had a brow quirked. "But it's been a while since I heard about you being over here. Special occasion? Got bored of the porn magazines?"

"I'd punch you if you weren't my student." Jiraiya had a deadpan expression directed at the blond, a visible frown on his face. "And, no. I'm just trying to distract myself."

"From what?"

"... Aren't you heartless." Jiraiya's previous expression had vanished, and was replaced with a serious one. Minato stared at his former teacher's eyes, and his own eyes widened when he detected the sadness in them.

"O... Oh. No, I know, now." Minato lowered his gaze, frowning at himself as he rubbed the back of his neck. He mentally hit himself over the head. Boy, did he feel like a real jerk. But it made him realize that he was actually able to forget about them, if at least for a little while.

The blond was snapped out of his daze when he felt Jiraiya's hefty arm sling around his shoulder.

"Don't beat yourself up over it, 'Nato, I forgive you. Just buy me a few drinks and I'll forgive you completely for not thinking."

"Wh- you tricked me!" Minato accused as he struggled a bit, but Jiraiya's arm folded around his neck to keep him locked in place. "You know drinking isn't-"

"The answer, but it is for me." Jiraiya interrupted with a huge yawn, covering his mouth slightly with his free hand. Using that hand, he ruffled his student's blond hair. "You'll understand when you drink. C'mon, why don't we drink together?"

"I'm not old enough yet, so, I'll pass." Minato murmured. His shoulders were slumped, and he _knew_ what he would have to do once he payed for Jiraiya's numerous drinks.

Jiraiya grinned, like he was already drunk, and guided his student away from the hot springs. "Well, alright, but you and I _will _drink someday, right?"

"I guess."

"Great!" Jiraiya laughed a bit, seeming more like his old self. Minato looked at him from the corner of his eye, and gave a wary smile, knowing exactly what was going to happen once alcohol passed Jiraiya's lips...

* * *

... And just like Minato predicted, he had Jiraiya's arm slung over his shoulder in order to support the large man, keeping a grip on Jiraiya's wrist so that his arm wouldn't slide off. The blond had more than enough experience with his drunken teacher, so he knew not to resist as Jiraiya tottered over to the otherside of the street in his stupor. All he had to do was steadily guide the drunken man back to his house, and keep him on his feet. That and be patient with where Jiraiya tottered off to.

Usually, Jiraiya would hit on rather hefty women, slurring compliments and even offering to take them home, in which Minato would yell an apology as he dragged the white-haired man away.

It was fairly late into the night, and there weren't as much people out on the streets as usual, which made things a bit easier for Minato. Normally it would have taken him 30 minutes to help Jiraiya back home, but tonight it seemed like it would only take 15 due to the lack of distractions. But, like everytime Minato sat through Jiraiya's drinking, he patiently sat through drunken ramblings (and even a bit of crying this time around), heard some things he didn't need to hear, and listened to stories that were so farfetched to be even remotely true. Well, it provided some odd entertainment, the blond figured.

Minato looked away from his former teacher to scan the dark streets. And, like usual, he used the spaced-out street lights as check points, knowing very well that Jiraiya's house was four lights away from the bar they usually went to. Minato counted the third one, and adjusted Jiraiya's arm that was slung over his shoulder.

"C'mon, sensei. We're just about to your house."

"Alreeadddyyyy? Daamn, you shure? We'v' only walk'd fer... um..."

"15 minutes." Minato informed, knowing that Jiraiya was stumped.

"Yea, yea! Fi'teen minutes..." Jiraiya slurred, one of his eyes drooping shut. Minato ignored the thick smell of alcohol that came from Jiraiya's mouth, and absentmindedly wondered how he wasn't used to the odor by now. He just heaved a sigh, and carried on supporting his drunken sensei. _Just another block..._

Once the man's house was within viewing distance, Minato picked up the pace, making Jiraiya stumble numerous times.

"W'as the rush, 'natto?" Jiraiya grumbled dazedly.

_Natto? That's a new one._ Minato mused warily, choosing to ignore his sensei for now. The man needed to sleep off all the alcohol in his system, and Minato knew it was getting late. And he knew better that Jiraiya would be irritated to wake up, hung over, with the sun glaring into through the windows.

The blond pretty much had a mental check list of what to do when his teacher was drunk.

1. Take him back to his house.

Which he did, and, like the last few times, Minato had trouble getting the front door open. The process took several minutes, and it didn't help that Jiraiya was constantly trying to wander off on his own, but Minato finally got the door open and the drunken man through it.

2. Get him onto the bed- or couch.

Usually it was the latter Minato went with- this time was no exception. Minato stumbled several times with Jiraiya, and even almost got pulled down when Jiraiya nearly fell over. All of Jiraiya's belongings that cluttered the floor were to blame for the close calls.

As soon as he dumped Jiraiya onto the couch, Minato exhaled an exasperated sigh. And, like always, he mused about how this would be a lot easier if Jiraiya wasn't such a large man.

3. Close all the drapes.

Closing all the curtains was the easiest part, though Minato had to stop a couple of times to blur across the room to catch Jiraiya when the man stood up and tottered over.

"Just lay down, sensei." Minato sighed as he stepped over a couple of pillows that were on the ground, trailing back over to the window and dragging the large curtain across the class. The house was quiet, save the sound of the curtain being closed, making Minato look over at his sensei. Jiraiya had- finally -fallen asleep on the couch, his left arm and leg dangling over the side.

4. Leave some medicine out for him.

As the blond wandered into the kitchen and perused the cabinets, he found that Jiraiya had none. So he just filled a glass of water and left it out on the small coffee table in front of the couch. He straightened himself and patted some dust off his sleeves, staring at Jiraiya and wondering if he would be alright until morning.

"..." As a precaution, the blond gathered the pillows that were scattered around the living room and placed them on the ground next to the sofa; so that at least there would be some cushioning if Jiraiya rolled off. On his way out the door, Minato looked over his shoulder numerous times, before he finally locked the door and exited the household.

_Time to head home..._

"Blondy!"

Minato stumbled forward several steps at the yell, just managing to catch himself from vanishing into a shunshin. Honestly, he was caught off guard, so his heart rate picked up a bit when his nickname was yelled. He had a pretty good idea as to _who_ it was... He composed himself and stood up straight, turning around and, like he predicted, spotted a black wolf running up to him.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" Daylian was bristling, his hackles standing on ends and canines bared. Minato was surprised, to say the least, at his expression. Not to mention confused, considering the time. Minato actually braced himself, half-expecting the wolf to attack him, by the way he was running and looking down right pissed.

"She's not with you!" Daylian snarled as he skidded to a halt a couple of feet before collision. Minato's eyes widened at his words; there was only one person Daylian could be talking about, and from the sound of it, she was _missing._ But first, he had to get information out of the wolf so that he wouldn't jump to conclusions- much like he was a second ago.

"Calm down..." Minato tried to speak levelly, though he could feel his own arms trembling. "What's going on?"

The wolf started pacing to and fro in front of Minato, growling to himself. "She's been sneaking out at night, and I thought it was to see you, but...!" Daylian's glowing violet eyes snapped back up to the blond. "She's not here, and you reek of sake'!"

"T... The smell must have rubbed off onto me- Jiraiya-sensei was drinking.." Minato tried to explain while keeping his voice steady, but the alarm was clearly evident. "But.. she's been sneaking out? I haven't seen her for two weeks..." And that fact was scaring him. The pessimistic side of him was drawing several different pictures in his head, which was breaking his heart just thinking about it.

Minato tried to swallow a lump in his throat, but it felt as though the thickest layers of honey was coating it. Daylian was still pacing to and fro, as if he were trying to march off his frustration.

"Fuck. I watched her sneak out last night and let it slide, but she went out again tonight, so I followed! But then I scented you in another direction, so... Fuck!" Daylian snarled the last word loudly, making Minato flinch out of his thoughts. The wolf grabbed a part of Minato's sleeve with his fangs, jerking his head in one direction as if to pull the man forward. "God dammit, let's go!"

"Y... yeah." Minato stammered, although he felt rather light-headed right now. He knew the blood was drained from his face, and it made him dizzy. Mix it together with unwanted thoughts involving Kushina, and he was just about ready to sway off his feet. Daylian ran along side him, growling darkly at the blond whenever he started to slow down or even threatened to fall over.

_What the hell is wrong with you?_ Daylian wanted to scream, but gritted his fangs slightly and narrowed his violet eyes. _Dammit, if he doesn't get his shit together, then it would have been a big waste of time! Time that could have been used to catch 'Shina! Dammit, blondy...!_

"Get a move on!"

* * *

**Author(ess)'s Notes:  
Kiki: **For the record, I totally bullshitted Minato's teammates' names. (I've used Kuria's name once before in the earlier chapters.) I'd appreciate it if anyone didn't stupidly tell me stuff like 'OMG you got their names wrong, it's -blah blah name that isn't proven-' :T Minato's teammates will forever be forgotten and never known, (it's safe to assume that anyway) so blah.

(Sorry if I sounded a bit rude there. xD' I'm just not fond of reviews along those lines, y'know?)

...

So, if this wasn't clear, this is part 1 out of 2 of this 'special release'. Don't expect much more of these. The only reason why I'm doing this is because the time Minato and Kushina have been apart has been dragged on. Originally, they were to be reunited in this chapter, but then it would have felt congested and even rushed. And that reunion is... well, something that should have a lot of detail and emotion, and rushing it won't portray it very well. So, I bumped their reunion to the next chapter.

But since a lot of you have grown rather bored, I figured, why not updated them together? It spares you all the agony of having to wait another several weeks for the fluff to come back.

Anyways, I won't stall you guys much longer. Go on, click the 'Next' button, and I'll see you guys in the next Note.


	36. Hello

**Chapter XXXVI: Hello**

Minato wasn't sure of what to think anymore. His body was following Daylian through the sleeping village, but his mind was showing him unwanted mental images that numbed his heart. He hadn't seen her for two and a half weeks, and learning that she was sneaking out in the middle of the night... It was rather dizzying. The blond didn't want to assume the worse, but his subconscious kept showing him the possibility, making the blood drain from his face and leave it a pale color. He absolutely didn't want to lose faith in Kushina; but he couldn't help feeling a little scared. He didn't want his heart broken; he loved her too much-

No!

_Stop thinking like that!_ Minato inwardly yelled at himself. In his mind he was facing turmoil, but to the outside world he was just looking blank and occasionally stumbling as they travelled across the rooftops. _Kushina would _never_ do something that low!_

"Minato!"

Minato was rudely snapped out of his thoughts at the bark, blinking dazedly. Without realizing it, they had stopped on a vast rooftop, the black wolf a couple of paces ahead of him. Daylian had his ears laid flat against his skull, and his violet, glowing eyes were glaring daggers at him. His bared, white fangs were even visible in the dim moonlight.

"I _said_; go home if you're going to be a mindless idiot." Daylian growled darkly. "It was a waste of my fucking time to go look for you- time I could have used to track Kushina." The wolf turned his back to the blond, and opened his mouth to taste the faded scent. He shifted from paw to paw, and then quickly hurtled himself into a run, clearing the jump to the next rooftop.

"Daylian-san, wait."

Daylian turned his head and found that the blond was suddenly standing behind him, so he offered a frown as much as a wolf could. "What."

"I'm sorry, I'm just..." Minato was massaging the bridge of his nose, trying to seize his grasp of reality. His thoughts were still dizzying, and it took a lot of effort to push away undesirable thoughts, but he was getting feeling back in his numbed senses, if bit by bit. "... Please, try to be empathetic. You don't know how much this is affecting me."

"Then get your shit together." Daylian snapped, his maw wrinkling as he bared his fangs again. He tossed his head back in the direction he was headed for. "Now come on. Her scent is faded, but it's still there. Kushina was never good at completely erasing her tracks, so hopefully we can find her soon."

"Right..." Minato murmured, continuing to follow the older ninja as he tracked the missing kunoichi. He closed his eyes for several seconds as he inhaled and exhaled. Now he _really_ wished he had better control over his emotions. The despicable mental images kept returning no matter how far back he pushed them away, and every time they would come back, his senses would suddenly feel more and more numbed. The only thing that was possibly keeping him sane at the moment was Daylian's threat to leave him behind. If it was any other guy he didn't know, Minato probably would have even gone back to the bar Jiraiya had drank at.

_Stop. That._ The sane side of him slapped him back into reality. When he opened his blue eyes, he found that Daylian was a couple of yards ahead. Minato quickly shortened the distance so that he was only a couple of feet behind the wolf.

Occasionally, Daylian would slow down and even stop to sniff around, before hastily continuing their trek across the slumbering village.

But the more they travelled, the more Minato felt the blood drain from his face. If they continued along this route...

Surely enough, the two no longer had rooftops to travel along, forcing them to jump from atop the last one and land on the ground. They both straightened in unison, staring out in silence at the large village gates before them.

It took a huge amount of willpower for Minato to keep himself from collapsing down onto his knees, although he did sway a bit.

"Come on." Daylian growled, walking forward a couple of paw steps. "Now we really need to hurry. Who knows what's going on?" He muttered.

Minato had absolutely no idea what was happening. Kushina was sneaking out, but why would she leave the village?

What if she was _forced_ to?

The very thought made something click in his head, making his composure return and his brows furrow. He frowned darkly, and even gritted his teeth at the thought.

"..." Daylian's head was turned so that he could look over his shoulder and up at the blond, observing Minato's expression change. _Good. Focus. I can't have you moping around, _if_ there are enemies._ The wolf swung his head slowly back to the front. "Let's go, Minato."

The blond's sharpened blue eyes flickered to the wolf, suddenly realizing that he was no longer being called by his nickname. This situation was getting serious.

It was terrible to think, but Minato hoped that there were enemies. He would be able to handle the situation in a second- no, half a second. But if Kushina was willingly sneaking out like this... possibly to meet someone? Minato wasn't sure if he would be able to recover from the amount of heartbreak. Just _thinking _about it was making his heart crumble, so he pushed the thoughts away, focusing on the possibility of enemies.

As they rounded the gatehouse, to avoid the dozing guard, Minato felt his confidence returning with each step. He was feeling more like himself, and even drew a kunai to further motivate himself.

The duo quickly slipped out the gates and ducked into the shadows of the forest, Minato holding still while Daylian sniffed the ground several times. The wolf finally lifted his head and turned his head slowly as he tracked the scents, before he silently padded in the eastern direction.

"Come on." The wolf whispered, stopping midsentence when Minato placed an index finger to his lips.

_'There are still guards that are on alert.'_ The blond breathed near inaudibly, forcing Daylian to read his lips, and motioned towards the top of the walls, where one of the guard stations was situated. Slowly, the wolf dipped his head forward into a nod to show that he understood.

'_This way._'

They travelled in silence the rest of the way, save the light sniffs Daylian would take when the scent would fade momentarily.

Minato started to begin curling and uncurling his fingers around his kunai in an anxious movement. Since they had to travel in slow, silent movements- as to not alert the guards -the time passed since they exited the village must have been at least 20 minutes, and there were still no signs of Kushina.

Another concerning factor was that they were sticking close to the village walls, rather than heading out into the forest and away from the village like Minato thought they would.

_What's going on?_ The blond thought as he gritted his teeth slightly. _Most enemies would immediately head away from the village to avoid being outnumbered... Her scent is just leading us in a circle around the village..._ Minato stopped mid-step and withdrew his foot when he realized Daylian had halted once more. The Jounin only watched the wolf, the corner of his mouth twitching as he continued to process his own thoughts.

If Daylian was confused, he certainly didn't show much of it. The former Uzu ninja slowly lifted his head, frowning as a wolf could, before he flicked his tail in a motion for the blond to follow, raising his paw forward to begin walking.

_She definitely stopped and tried to cover up her scent here... But with the window blowing from the East... it's easy to pick up the smell again._ The wolf subconsciously started to bare his fangs. _But there isn't a single trace of enemy scent mixed with hers. So she must have walked out here on her own. A mind-control technique? ... No, no. It wouldn't make sense; why her? She came out here on her own, but why?_

The two continued their trek in prolonged silence.

As they were slowly easing their way past a small bush, a hefty gust of wind challenged them head-on, forcing Daylian to growl a bit and place his foot back on the ground to keep from toppling over. As soon as his movements made the bush rustle, the wolf quickly lifted his paw back up into the air, although the movement proved futile as soon as he no longer felt the earth beneath his paw pads.

Daylian refrained from yelping as he was yanked deeper into the forest, violet eyes widening when he heard the _shunk_'s of knives hitting and sticking to the ground.

Minato had his arm around the wolf's flank from when he yanked Daylian out of harm's way, his other hand occupied with a kunai. The blond was crouching, his head turned so that he could look over his shoulder. Slowly, he released Daylian, allowing the wolf's paws back onto the grass. The former Uzu ninja did his best to keep his breathing steady and muffled, violet eyes wide as he looked at Minato.

Despite the fact that it was the guards that had thrown the weapons, Minato had a hint of bloodlust in his eyes, making Daylian's claws dig into the soil. He was glad that he would never have to face Minato in battle...

If he could focus enough, craning his wolven ear towards the direction of the village wall, he could hear a faint, _"It was probably some owl..."_, followed by a _"Geez, it was the wind, idiot. You're too jumpy, newbie." _

_'... Let's travel a little deeper in the forest.'_ Minato signaled, his head still turned to watch over his shoulder. Daylian dumbly nodded twice, carefully turning and walking slowly as to not disturb the watch guards.

_'... Thanks for saving my hide up there...'_ Daylian looked up at the blond once his shock subdued. The Jounin certainly wasn't his usual cheery self, but he wasn't looking like he was out for blood, either; Minato just looked focused with a bit of frustration leaking into his expression.

_'Let's just hurry up and find her.'_

_'...'_ Daylian dipped his muzzle forward into a sort of curt nod; before he swung his head back around and continued forward with his tracking.

The going was easy, with her scent fading occasionally, but the wind would always blow her scent back towards them, making their progression smooth without the disturbances of guards.

_'...! She's just up ahea-'_ The wolf stopped suddenly, his hackles rising along with his tail.

The abrupt motion suddenly made Minato tense. He observed the wolf, despite the dark fur that rivaled the night sky, and he could see that Daylian was slowly starting to tense, leg muscles rippling beneath fur. Minato could practically feel the anger rolling off the wolf, and was about to nudge him to snap him out of his growing rage. Daylian only stood his ground, slowly changing his position as he ignored the light nudge.

Predicting what was about to happen next, Minato quickly grabbed Daylian by the tail with his left hand before the wolf could go charging off. The older ninja whirled his head around, glaring darkly at his restrainer. _'Let me go!'_

_'You're just going to tip off the enemy.' _Minato signaled, though his mind was flying through several different scenarios. Why was Daylian getting so worked up? _He should know I can handle a hostage situation._ The blond frowned darkly, his grip on the wolf's tail tightening when he felt the former Uzu ninja struggle to charge once more.

_'We can't charge recklessly without knowing the full situation. Let's go see first, think things through, and _then_ act.'_ To emphasize this, Minato yanked the wolf by the tail so that they were standing side by side, sluggishly letting go of him to make sure he wouldn't go charging off.

Daylian seemed to get the message and remained beside Minato, though his fangs were still bared and hackles were raised to show that he was still angry. The corner of Minato's mouth twitch in wariness.

Carefully, he took a step forward, chakra's completely cut off and footsteps silenced. He even made sure to keep his breathing inaudible, and made sure that he didn't release any tense air about him. His right hand was still occupied by the kunai he had drawn earlier, which he carefully raised up to chest level, knuckles pointed upwards and the blade readied.

He couldn't sense Daylian behind him, but it was a good thing he didn't, as it would have meant the potential enemies would have detected the wolf. Unless there was an A-ranked sensor or someone.

There was a small, dim light in a clearing ahead, so Minato made sure to stick to the shadows, carefully pressing his back against a tree.

He heard a hushed murmur, somewhat unclear to his ears. He narrowed his blue eyes. Slowly, he adjusted his grip on his three-pronged kunai, his blood beginning to run cold as he thought on how to go about the assassination. Just as he made up his mind, he slowly started to move his foot.

But when a warm laugh reached his ears, he froze.

That was unmistakably Kushina's laugh.

Something he hadn't heard in what felt like ages.

But why?

Minato slumped back against the tree, his face drained of the dark expression he wore when he was about to kill someone. The kunai bearing arm slowly fell back down to his side, and he could only listen, dumbfounded, as the redhead in the clearing tried to stifle her snickers. In his peripherals, he could see the wolf standing a few feet away, white fangs no longer visible in a vicious expression.

Why?

The laugh didn't sound bitter, something Kushina probably would have done to taunt her enemies, but, rather, it sounded warm. For the briefest of seconds, Minato felt jealous, knowing that Kushina's expressive mirth wasn't for just anyone to hear. He quickly shoved the feeling aside and turned his head, oh so slightly, and peered into the clearing.

The kunoichi was sitting on the ground, a few feet away from the small light source sitting in the middle of the clearing. Her legs were crossed and her forearms were resting on her legs, leaning forward slightly as if trying to listen to what the man sitting across from her was saying.

Obviously, there were no signs of any restraints on her.

Minato's heart started to sink deeper into his chest, making him feel uncomfortable. He could feel the blood draining from his face, leaving a cold sensation, as he turned his head to peer around the other side of the tree. He didn't recognize the man sitting across from Kushina, which only made him feel more... down.

_She's been sneaking out to see this man... behind my back..._ All of his original feelings were starting to rush back at him; it was overwhelming, dizzying, disorienting. He leaned back heavily against the tree trunk to keep himself from staggering forward and possibly make a sound to alert them of his presence.

He might as well have lodged the kunai into his heart.

But he probably wouldn't have even felt that.

His whole body felt numbed as he felt his heart be practically torn into two.

In a movement so agonizingly slow, Minato looked down at the kunai. He stared blankly for several seconds, and then carefully turned it so that he could slice a thin wound into his thumb. As the blood slowly oozed out, stung by the cold night air, the reality of the situation began to settle in.

Everything was real.

No genjutsu, no false reality, no mind-controlling techniques.

Nothing.

Minato's eyelids started to droop in sadness. He knew if he looked at his own reflection, there would be no life in his eyes. He felt... dead.

Heart break on this level hurt.

The blond gradually raised his head, although it seemed to have taken some effort to even do so. He sluggishly raised an arm, using his long sleeve to wipe at his left eye. Without even realizing it, he had already started shedding a couple of tears, and tiredly wiped away at the trails a couple stray droplets left on his cheeks. His arm dropped back down to his side, and he tilted his head back to rest it against the tree.

He wanted to leave, but he felt so drained of energy... He felt as though he could go lie in a ditch for several days and not care, in fact. He could probably go without food for weeks, too; he knew he wasn't going to have an appetite for a long, long time. If he could drag himself back to the village, that is.

_'...'_

Minato's mind was slowly processing the fact that Daylian was there, and he sluggishly turned his head to look down at the wolf, who had taken a paw step forward in concern. The blond blinked once, twice, thrice, and then, in a movement that made him seem drowsy, pushed himself up off the tree trunk and onto his own two feet.

_'Let's... go...'_ Minato signaled lazily, dropping his hands back down to his sides as he took slow steps back towards the Western direction.

Daylian's eyes widened in surprise, his head slowly turning as he watched the blond start to walk away in disbelief. _'W.. we're leaving?'_ He quickly turned around- although slowly enough as to not create footsteps -to trot after the blond.

_'... I... can't keep her on a leash or anything.'_ Minato communicated idly with just his left hand, his head beginning to droop forward and hang as he did this. _'If she wanted to meet with him, then... I should just let her...'_ As he signaled, a sort of grip, metallic cold, clutched at his heart and squeezed it tightly, painfully. He felt like he was suffocating.

Once he was far away enough from the two, he would shunshin back to the village- _.. No, they might search around for the source and find them..._ The blond hung his head. Looks like he would have to trudge the whole way back. How agonizing.

He lifted his free arm to wipe away a couple of gathering tears that threatened to overflow.

Then, out of what appeared to be pure reflex, the blond's right hand, the one bearing the kunai, shot out and caught a man square in the throat. Minato looked up and then turned his head, slowly pulling his left hand away from his eyes as he looked to his right. Surely enough, in the darkness, he could see a man he never saw before writhing, eyes wide as he clawed as his pierced next before holding still.

"What the fuck!" Daylian jumped back as the body slumped to the ground, hackles raised in shock and eyes widened.

Minato's own set of eyes became saucers as he stared down at the lifeless body, pupils narrowing. He spun around and tightened his grip on the kunai, catching another man with the blade. The momentum the enemy was going managed to help lodge the entire Hiraishin kunai into his chest, killing him instantly. By then, Minato's eyes had narrowed as he snapped out of his previous trance, his mind flying through difference scenarios, all in which arrived at the same conclusion.

In the pale moonlight, the metallic plates of their hitai-ate's were visible, the indentation clearly showing an all-too familiar symbol: Iwa.

_He deceived her!_

_Kushina!_ Minato spun on the balls of his feet and shot back towards the clearing, arriving in less than a couple of seconds. He landed a foot in front of Kushina, standing between her and the man, his bloody kunai held out and pointed directly at the man's throat. His eyes were narrowed on a dangerous level of blood lust, but he remained where he was, daring the Iwa ninja to make a move.

The two in the clearing were already on their feet when Daylian had first yelled out, but as soon as Minato appeared, seemingly out of thin air, the two jumped. Shisu was backing up a couple of steps away from the dim firefly jar, teal eyes wide with fear as he instantly recognized the man before him. Kushina was spooked as well, but not for the same reason as Shisu.

"M.. Minato?" She breathed, her hand covering her chest, as if the motion would ease the rate her heart was pumping at. She could feel her blood and adrenaline flooding throughout her veins, making her tremble, and the fact that Minato had such a dangerous aura rolling off him didn't help her feeling either. "What-" She stopped when Minato suddenly flung his arm out to the side, and Kushina's eyes widened when she saw that there was no longer a kunai in his grip.

Kushina turned her head to the right, and saw a man pinned to the tree by the kunai, although the knife only punctured the sleeve of his clothing. The kunoichi's eyes widened further at the unfamiliar man, and slowly the hand on her chest clutched at her shirt, knuckles turning white and trembling from the strength of her vice grip. _Who is that...!_

"You bastard!" A familiar voice made Kushina crane her head to the left, where Daylian was stepping through the foliage with his ears folded flat against his skull and canines bared. The wolf was glaring directly at Shisu, and even took a couple of steps closer than Minato, which only made the man promptly back up.

".. 'Lian...?" Shisu breathed, pupils slitting as the wolf's voice slowly brought up memories. He backed up a couple of more steps, but was stopped when he felt a tree against his back.

It was hard to tell from where Kushina was standing, especially with Minato blocking half of her view, but she could clearly sense the fear emanating from Shisu. She wasn't sure what to make of the situation, that is, until Minato spoke.

"How long has this been going on?" The blond had long forgotten about his earlier desolation, now displaced with anger and suspicion. "How long have you been deceiving her?"

_What...?_ Kushina froze at his words; almost literally. It felt as though icy-cold water had somehow found its way into her veins, stinging her innards and practically eating through her heart.

"I..." Shisu seemed to shrink at the questions, wincing when Minato drew another kunai. Shakily, his teal gaze shot over to his pinned fellow, who was only glowering between Shisu and Minato. The former Uzu ninja looked back at Minato, still at a loss for words. "I..."

Shisu flinched when Minato flung the kunai, feeling it graze his cheek with deadly precision and embed itself into the tree trunk behind him. The Iwa ninja could have sworn his heart stopped beating for a few seconds. In his peripherals he could see the ring of the kunai, though his stunned gaze was on the blond.

"Get out of here." Minato muttered as he lowered his arm, casting a suspicious glance over at Shisu's lone comrade. "Before-"

"_You bastard_!" Kushina's scream nearly caught the blond off guard, and Minato quickly raised his arm to stop the kunoichi from charging recklessly at Shisu. The redhead only fought against Minato's restraint, brown eyes glaring daggers at the former Uzu ninja. "I thought you were different!_ I thought I could trust you_!" Her voice was beginning to grow raspy from the volume of her screams, but she took no heed; fury was mixing with her adrenaline, and if Minato wasn't holding her back, she would have easily killed Shisu.

"K-Kushina, listen-"

"You betrayed me! You..." Kushina's pupils narrowed dangerously. "_You swore on Uzu's honor_!"

The sheer amount of anger, paired with the high intensity of her voice, was enough to shake Minato to the core.

"That's enough.." Minato spun around, wrapping his arms around her, partially to restrain her, another to comfort her. Even against his own chest, he could feel Kushina's heart ramming into her ribcages, and carefully placed a hand on the back of her head, tilting it so that her face would be buried in his shoulder. He turned his own head subtly as to not disturb her, blue eyes narrowing at the man he previously pinned to the tree.

"Get out of here." Daylian barked, snapping his fangs at the two Iwa ninja. "You're lucky we aren't slaughtering you on the spot."

"'Lian-"

"Shut up!" Daylian swung around when Shisu tried to speak, black pupils slitted as he growled a threat. "Before I fetch the guards to chase you guys across the border, but they might not be as forgiving as we are."

"I'll _never_ forgive you!" Kushina protested, squirming to tilt her head back so that she could yell without her voice getting muffled. Minato quickly tightened his arm around her waist, carefully pushing her face back into his shoulder.

Daylian's ear twitched as a tearing sound broke the short silence, the other ninja appearing beside Shisu and grabbing the stunned man by the collar of his shirt.

"Let's go." He muttered darkly to the Uzu ninja. "We need to report. And Masuhita-taichou won't be happy with your failure."

The words were breathed, but Daylian was able to hear every word before the man yanked Shisu into a shunshin. The wolf closed his eyes, pushing away the genuine look of guilt that he was able to read in Shisu's eyes. He sniffed every few seconds to make sure their faint scents were moving further and further away, before he slowly looked down. His sensitive ears could clearly detect the sniffling that came from Kushina, and the hushing that Minato exhaled, so he carefully moved across the clearing, staring down at the firefly jar as he passed.

"... The guards probably heard almost everything... I'll let them know what's going on..." Daylian murmured, the soft volume was loud in the now-silent forest, minus the light murmuring he could hear coming from curious guards that ran down the village walls.

Minato only gave the slightest dip of his head to show that he acknowledged what Daylian said, his focus now returning to the kunoichi.

There were just too many emotions tonight; it almost gave him a déjà-vu feeling of that night he always kept in his memories. As he slipped out of his dangerous ninja side, he could feel his heart breaking as Kushina started to cry more, and carefully brushed the side of his head against hers.

"Shhh..." Minato hushed, carefully stroking her hair, which felt soft as it slipped between his fingers. He closed his eyes and took in her scent; the once-familiar citrus smell now felt new to him. He felt her squirm a bit, and then eventually felt her arms wrap around his own waist, squeezing tightly as she evidently shivered.

"He... he..." Kushina whimpered, and a second later she shuddered from what Minato knew could have been out of either anger or sadness. The blond leaned back slightly and pulled away the hand that was at the back of her head, carefully using the ends of his sleeve to wipe away the translucent stains the tears left on her cheeks, all while softly hushing for her to calm down.

The kunoichi's face scrunched as she fought her tears back, biting her lower lip to keep her from whimpering and hiccupping while Minato dabbed the salty droplets that would stray from the corners of her eyes, which she squeezed shut after a while. Even more drops trailed from her eyes, making Minato stop.

"I.." Kushina's raspy voice dropped into a whisper, but Minato could easily hear due to their proximity. "Why.. don't you hate me? I was keeping all this from you..." Her hands that were on Minato's back slowly started digging into his flak vest, but Minato could feel her nails and her fingers trembling through the thick material.

"..." The corner of Minato's mouth twitched into a frown. He raised the same hand he used to wipe her cheeks dry, cupping her face gently and using his thumb to wipe the corner of her eye when he saw another tear threatening to slip out. The move slowly ushered Kushina to open her eyes, brows tilted at an angle that only enhanced the worried look in her eyes. Minato just about nearly got lost in them, then quickly remembered what he was going to say, gently stroking her temple with his thumb.

"You should have told me," Minato finally spoke, his voice suppressed into a whisper. "I would have understood... or tried to..." For the briefest of moments, he thought about what he would have done _if_ Kushina had told him.

The kunoichi answered for him.

"But... you would have said no, it's a trap..." Kushina slowly tilted her head forward to look down, shoulders slumping. "... And you would have been right..." She leaned forward, still looking down, and rested her forehead against his shoulder in shame. She honestly regretted her decision, and the feeling was like taking a stab straight to the heart, making her cringe. She sniffed and bit her lower lip, feeling the tears beginning to gather once more; she desperate fought to prevent them from falling, knowing that it would only make her feel worse.

"Kushina..."

The way her name was breathed made Kushina's skin tingle. For a few seconds the will to keep her tears in vanished, letting them drip out; it was only then she realized how much she missed Minato. _I must have made him suffer..._ She pursed her lips then squeezed her eyes shut, feeling more guilty than she had before. She expected him to let go, and nearly felt her heart shatter when he carefully pulled back, removing his shoulder from beneath her head.

But Minato kept his arm tight around her waist, and cupped her jaw line to tenderly tilt her head back so that she could look at him. Kushina's lower lip started to tremble in a motion that showed she was close to bursting into tears again, so Minato offered the softest of smiles.

"Just tell me next time..." He murmured, moving his hand away from her jaw line to catch a tear that she wasn't aware had escaped. "You don't need to shoulder everything by yourself..."

"..." Kushina's lip quivered even more at his words, but somewhere in her heart she felt as though she was still keeping him from being happy; that he was just too nice to really say what he was feeling, that he could have wanted to end this...

"B... but.. why...?" She breathed then adverted her gaze, lip still quivering as she kept her pessimistic thoughts to herself, unable to find the words, much less, the courage, to even form what she was thinking.

"Why?" Minato repeated the last word she said, and then smiled as the answer came to him instantly. He leaned forward, his cheek brushing against hers as he moved in to whisper,

"Because I love you."

Kushina stiffened at his words, then a sad, crooked frown appeared as she choked back a sob, wiping away her tears before they could skirt down her cheeks.

"I.. I love you too, Minato..."

The blond couldn't help but smile broadly, suddenly feeling vivacious, something he hadn't felt in a long, long time. He grinned and believed as though nothing could bring him down after this moment. He raised his hand and tucked a couple strands of her beautiful red hair behind her ear, cupping her face in the same, fluid motion.

"I've been dying to hear that..." Minato breathed as he brought he leaned forward to bring his face close, pressing his forehead against hers, eyes closing as he took in her scent once more. Her skin was starting to feel warm against his hand as she blushed, and he slowly opened his eyes to peer into hers. The emotions in her eyes were so familiar, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

_Wait... I remember. _He thought. That shyness in her eyes... it was just like when they first started going out.

Minato smiled softly then angled his head so that his lips were close to hers, but he stopped a millimeter away; half of it was to prepare himself, and the other half was to see if she would shy away at the motion. He smiled to ignore his frantically beating heart and inaudibly exhaled a sort of sigh, relieved to see that she wasn't recoiling from his close proximity. He even noticed that her eyes were already closed and her breath was being held, making him inwardly chuckle.

Not wanting to keep her waiting, he closed the miniscule gap between their lips.

He felt her stiffen a bit, accompanied by a faint, sharp inhale, as if she were startled. Minato only inclined his head to deepen the kiss, and suddenly everything in his heart felt right again; it was almost as if the whole situation a few minutes ago didn't even happen, that they were in their own little world now...

His eyes opened slightly when he felt Kushina take sudden, soft breaths, as if she almost forgot to breathe. He smiled into the kiss and carefully pulled back, much to his own disappointment; but reality was starting to come back to him. Still, he pecked her gently on the forehead before smiling down at her. Even in the dim lighting the moonlight and fireflies provided, he could see that the coloring of her face rivaled those of her hair.

"You're so cute.." Minato whispered, earning a fidget from the kunoichi before she looked away with a frown-slash-pout. The expression only made him smile brighter. He even chuckled and even pulled her into another hug, nuzzling his head against hers. "Kushina... Let's go home." He leaned back to look down at her.

Kushina stared up at him, unable to keep herself from smiling a bit at Minato's, and then nodded. She looked to her right when Daylian appeared through the foliage, pursing her lips and looking away, all while trying to squirm out of Minato's arms. Even before, she wasn't quite comfortable with public display of affection, and now, being reunited with Minato after what felt like _months_.. It didn't help that she was even embarrassed, or shy, she wasn't sure, with Minato himself.. and to have her brother-by-law staring at them didn't exactly help.

Though, Daylian just snorted and swung his muzzle around, approaching the small jar of fireflies and closing his jaw around the small wire that was attached. He lifted it off the ground, turning back around and trotting past the couple.

"We can use this," He explained through his teeth, knowing that if he opened his mouth the jar would probably fall. "Come on, you two... I explained to the guards, and they'll let us back in quietly."

"Thanks.." Minato nodded then looked down at Kushina with a smile. The red-haired kunoichi was still looking flustered, but she nodded, moving forward in step with Minato to follow Daylian.

She casted a last look at the clearing, memories of the conversations with Shisu flooding back at her. Kushina closed her eyes and turned her head back, pushing away the unsettling thoughts. She walked in the silence with the two men, and then slid her gaze down to Minato's hand. She sniffed a bit and then looked away, carefully brushing her hand against his. She was about to twine her fingers with his, but Minato quickly caught on and did so for them. When she shifted her line of sight back to him, he was already smiling down at her, and he even bent down a bit to kiss her lightly on the lips.

Kushina's heart swelled and, slowly, she was starting to feel at ease, at home with the man. She shyly smiled and leaned against him as they walked, fingers still intertwined tightly.

_Thank you...

* * *

_

**Author(ess)'s Notes:  
Kiki: **And this is clearly part 2 of the special update.

Was it worth the wait? x.x

Ughhh, I'm not sure how I managed to accomplish this. Algebra 2 has just been keeping me so swamped, urgh.

.. But anyways, I'd really appreciate it if you guys dropped some _reviews_, y'know?  
I mean. Come on. xD'  
I give you guys _two_ updates. I deserve a bunch, right? -nudgenudge- -winkwink-  
(Hell, and don't be afraid to give me some constructive criticism too, guys. Just make it sound polite instead of asshat-ish. ;o)

Oh, but um. Since I treated you guys, there might be a bit of time between this and the next update; but please try to understand that school's just been swamping me. u.u -sad face-


	37. Ryuusei

**Chapter XXXVII: Ryuusei**

Even as he sat in the shade the building provided, Minato could feel the air beginning to turn humid; an early indication of the approaching summer. He sat with his shoulder blades pressed back against the wall, the lower half of his body slumped forward in a sort of lazy position. His finger hooked around the collar of his Jounin shirt, pulling the material away from his neck to let some air in, whilst his blue eyes scanned the distant sky. Surely enough, he could see dark clouds rolling closer, probably due to arrive within a couple of days and dump warm rain onto the village. It also hinted at the fact that it wouldn't snow when winter arrived.

_Snow sounds nice._ Minato thought languidly, his finger still pulling his collar away from his neck.

Having living in the village all his life, he was very much accustomed to the weather; but if the air was already getting too warm, even for him, then he _knew_ the summer would be dreadfully damp and humid. It was definitely something he wasn't looking forward to, especially since he had the responsibility to train his students rigorously. The very thought made him sigh, so he searched for ideas on what to do for training during the rainy season.

His planning was interrupted as he heard the pipes shift in the wall behind him, telling him that the water was about to be used by someone. And if he knew correctly...

The blond Jounin got up onto his feet, one hand brushing himself off in two, simple strokes, while the other hand reached for the doorknob of the entrance he was previously sitting by. Minato turned the knob and pushed the door open in a single movement, and, just like he predicted, he received a response from the man inside.

"What the fuck?" Daylian had gotten himself into a position where he could spring to his feet within the next second, but he remained on the ground as soon as his violet gaze riveted to the blond. A half frown replaced his former expression, the corner of his mouth twitching as he observed Minato closing the door and quietly walk in. _Uninvited._ Daylian thought briefly.

He folded his arms in confusion, and reformed himself so that he was sitting cross-legged, rather than in an alert position. Daylian's eyes were glued to Minato suspiciously, watching the blond's every movements; from when he first walked in, to his simple strides, and then the rather formal position he was sitting in.

It was quite odd, but he felt more... how to explain it... Higher in rank?

Especially since Minato was sitting with his legs tucked beneath him and, get this, his head lowered into a bow. A respectful one, at that.

Daylian could feel his chest swell and a smug smirk make its way to the surface of his features, but he tried not to show it as he kept his arms folded. As the initial, superior feeling toned down, he started to think a little; sure, Minato was naturally respectful, but... _He started to ease up a bit when he started going out with 'Shina..._ This fact made Daylian arch a brow.

It didn't help that there was silence between the two of them, as if Minato were trying to pick his words carefully. So, he decided to take the initiative, just probably not in the way Minato was expecting.

"If you're going to grovel at my feet to let you sneak a peek at 'Shina while she's showerin-"

"No!" Minato instantly interrupted Daylian before the older ninja could even think of finishing the sentence, raising his head in unison with his flustered whisper, as if he were trying to keep his presence unknown to the kunoichi in the next room. His cheeks were clearly red at the mental image of his girlfriend, which he was desperately trying to brush off in order to regain his composure.

"Oh, well. Sorry, I'm not gay, blondy-"

"Daylian-san, _please_." At this point, Minato had his head lowered, but his eyes were being shielded with his hand, the other one raised in a 'please stop' hand sign. "Your sense of humor just seems to grow more and more.. dry..."

"If you're going to ask me a favor or something, then commenting on my humor isn't a good way to start it off."

"..." Minato's head dropped like a rock as he hung it, physically showing that he wasn't expecting Daylian to act like this. If anything, it only made the blond struggle more with his words and even think twice about all of it. He frowned a bit and raised his head, just slightly so that he was still dipped in a sort of bow.

"Daylian-san," Minato started, then paused concisely to even place his fists on the ground aside his knees; mostly to mentally prepare himself for whatever Daylian would throw back once he said it. "Please allow Kushina to move in with me!"

There was a heavy, heavy silence that weighed down on Minato's tense, stiffened shoulders. He could guess that Daylian was stunned, since he didn't sense an impending rage roll off the former Uzu ninja...

Finally, there was a monotonous,

"What."

Well, it was better than the blatant 'no' he was expecting.

"Why. Give me a hundred good reasons."

"A hundred?" Minato sputtered, raising his head promptly at this, keeping his fists on the ground. "I... can't name _that_ much, but I can give you a few good reasons."

"Sex isn't a reason-"

"Daylian-san!" Minato interrupted. His cheeks were tinted pink at the thought, and the fact that Daylian was so bold as to guess the reasons. "No, I wasn't thinking about that at all-" _That's a lie._ His conscience told him. "-I, I just..." The blond inhaled and exhaled through his nose in a quick, silent sigh, trying to regain his composure. "I was going to move into a smaller house anyway.. No point in living in a big house with two bedrooms and a den if it's just me..."

His blue gaze slowly rolled up to meet Daylian's, and he could clearly see that the man wasn't convinced.

"And I'm paying for the new house, anyway.." Minato sighed, his confidence slowly being eaten away from the intensity of Daylian's stare. "Which is a five minute... walk.. no, Shunshin.." He corrected himself as he calculated the distance in his mind. "A few minutes of Shunshin away from here..."

"..."

"... And..." It took a huge amount of willpower to keep Minato from sighing. Daylian wasn't exactly an easy man to convince, he learned... "I just want to make it easier for the two of you..."

"How so?"

"Kushina's told me that you've been working another job for the past several years, just to be able to support the both of you," Minato murmured. _I can only imagine how tired he can feel if he has to go on a mission _and_ do his job on the same day..._ "And.. I have more than enough from my parents' banks and from my missions... So that way you won't have to work another job just to be able to support Kushina..."

"..." The corner of Daylian's mouth twitched, as if he were honestly thinking about it. He sighed and unfolded one of his arms to rub the back of his neck, closing his eyes to think about what the blond said.

"Also... It's because I don't want something... like _that _to happen again..." Minato continued on, halting Daylian's train of thoughts. "I just want to protect her... Because I love her..."

"..." Daylian sighed heavily at this, as if he were torn between the two choices. "Well-"

He was interrupted when the door to his left, Minato's right, opened. His violet gaze flickered over to the opened bathroom door, and his gaze only lingered on the kunoichi for the briefest of seconds before he quickly adverted his line of sight. After all, Kushina only had a towel wrapped around herself, _she probably forgot to bring her clothes into the bathroom with her,_ Daylian thought, and she was still dripping wet to indicate that she had just gotten out of the shower.

"Oh...!" Daylian could hear her surprised gasp. "Minato.. when did you get here...?"

"Soon as you hopped into the shower.." Daylian murmured as he turned his head to look back at Minato, before frowning. The blond was still staring at the nude, save the towel around herself, redhead. There was a thick line of blush across Minato's face, making Daylian's eye twitch. Blindly, the man grabbed for a newspaper that was on the dining table beside them and rolled it up, all in a fluid movement, before he placed a foot forward and brought the object down hard on the blond's head.

"Ow!" Minato quickly scrambled away from Daylian's onslaught of strikes, even _if_ his weapon was just a rolled up newspaper.

"Everything you said earlier was just a ruse, wasn't it? Just for a glimpse at 'Shina after a shower!" Daylian growled as he continued assaulting Minato with the newspaper, even going far as to place his foot on Minato's back to keep him from going anywhere. The blond was covering his arm with both hands, slouching forward to increase some distance between his head and Daylian's reach. Of course, this proved to be futile.

"N, No! Who do you think I am, Daylian-san?"

"..." Kushina could only watch, her own cheeks colored pink, as the two men argued with each other. She adjusted the towel and held it in place, quickly darting across the room to gather her clothes and try not to leave a small trail of water behind. As she gathered the clothing into one arm, she turned her head to shyly look over at the blond, who had also looked at her just as she did. Of course, she only felt her cheeks flare with heat and looked away, just as Daylian started attacking Minato when he realized the blond had snuck a peek.

"Keep your dirty eyes shut!" Daylian growled as he placed his foot on Minato's shoulder again, slowly applying pressure as if to push the blond down to the floor.

"Okay, okay!" Minato mumbled, promptly doing as he was told and closing his eyes, although it clearly wasn't enough to convince Daylian to cease the onslaught of attacks.

Of course, the older ninja stopped abruptly after he heard the bathroom door shut behind the kunoichi. Daylian dropped his arm back down to his side, though he kept his foot on the blond's shoulder to keep the younger ninja pinned there.

"To think-"

"I didn't think she'd come out in only a towel, Daylian-san!" Minato interrupted before the man could start chewing him out. He kept himself propped upright with an arm, which was beginning to tremble under the weight Daylian was slowly applying.

"Well-"

"And I meant everything I said earlier." Minato turned his head to look Daylian squarely in the eye, even giving a slight frown to back his serious expression.

"..." Slowly, Minato's determination behind the words began to sink in, tugging the corner of Daylian's mouth into a sort of half scowl. He removed his foot from the blond's shoulder, just as the door to the bathroom opened.

Of course, it wouldn't have taken long for the kunoichi to get dressed; she wore her usual white robe with the red obi, along with some leggings since the robe itself was starting to become short. All she was missing were her hitai-ate and zori, really, then she'd have her daily outfit.

"So why are you here early?" Kushina asked, eying the two warily as she ruffled her hair damp with a towel. Her arm was already beginning to grow tired from the arduous task; with her hair getting longer, it was taking longer and longer to fluff it damp. She has half-thinking about cutting it to her shoulders to prepare for the upcoming summer, but she wasn't so sure.

"Wanted to pick you up; I changed the location of their training for the day." It wasn't a complete lie- Kushina probably could have gotten there herself if he told her.

Kushina's hand paused from where it was ruffling the back of her head, before she shrugged and believed him. It wasn't as though it were uncommon for Minato to come walk with her in the mornings, and the reason he gave her for showing up early made enough sense.

"Well, alright... And, uh. You can take your dirty foot off him, Da-nii.."

"My foot is not-..." Daylian started, as if retorting was an instinct to him. He lethargically lifted his foot, balancing on the other, as he angled it to look at the bottom. Minato grimaced from where he was on the floor, clearly noting the layer of dirt on the other man's foot, and then used his hand to brush off the area where Daylian had placed the said foot. Wordlessly, the blond pushed himself up to his feet, continuing to run his hand lightly over his green flak vest.

Daylian only sniffed and slipped his hands into his pockets, adopting a punk-ish kind of slouch as he spun on his heels to trail away from the blond once Kushina approached.

"What were you guys talking about?" Kushina questioned curiously, angling her head so that she could see past her damp bangs and at her guardian figure.

Minato probably would have continued to stare dumbly at her, if it weren't for the question.. in which he was supposed to keep the answer secret until he got Daylian's approval. So his mind quickly bolted away from the thoughts of how cute she looked and to some lies his brain thought up instantly.

"Konoha's situation on the war, mostly." Minato replied coolly, raising a hand and gently catching a water droplet that threatened to plop from a lock of her red hair. The motion was partially to distract her, and the other half was just a subconscious urge to touch her hair, really.

The redhead adopted a flustered expression, and quickly threw her towel over her head once more, wildly ruffling it in an attempt to further dry her hair. Minato beamed slightly at this and then placed a hand on her forearm, stopping it mid-stroke.

"It'll dry quickly once we're outside in the sun."

"Then get out of here already." Daylian sighed from where he was standing with his back turned to the couple, violet eyes staring out the window by Kushina's bed.

"Yeah, yeah." Kushina grumbled and then wrung out her hair with the towel one last time, before throwing the dampened cloth at the man. The material hit Daylian square in the back of the head, making him slump forward and growl irritably, pulling the towel off. By the time he turned to look over his shoulder, Kushina was pushing Minato out of the door.

"Oh, and Minato,"

The couple paused at this, the two of them turning their heads in unison to look back at the man.

"I'll think about it, alright?" Daylian muttered over his shoulder, before he rotated his head to gaze out the window by Kushina's bed.

Minato just stared back at the man, the words slowly processing before he beamed and nodded vigorously. "Thank you...!"

"Yeah, yeah." Daylian only waved off the gratitude, also motioning for the couple to leave.

Kushina was looking back and forth between the two, clearly confused, as she tried to figure out what her brother-by-law had meant, exactly. Said confusion only grew as Minato carefully pulled her out of the apartment, leaving Daylian to think about Minato's request.

"What does he mean?"

"Oh, nothing." Minato practically sang as he smiled down at her.

"Aww, come on, you can tell me.." Kushina put on the cutest expression she could muster, widening her eyes a little to add a puppy-dog look to top it off. It must have been effective, since Minato slowly looked up, laughing nervously and rubbing the back of his head.

"Ahaha... it's a secret." Minato merely responded as he guided her out into the sunlight of the village. "I'll tell you when Daylian gives me the 'ok'."

He braved another glance down at her, but her previous begging expression was quickly replaced with a pouting one; cheeks puffed and arms folded with her gaze adverted. This expression forced a laugh out of the blond, and he stopped before they could descend the stairs.

"I promise," Minato murmured with a light smile, turning the kunoichi by the shoulders so she could face him. Though she kept her head turned to look away, cheeks still puffed. He chuckled softly, then continued. "I'm sure Daylian won't take long to make his decision... In fact, he'll probably even ask you about it once he does." He took Kushina's chin between his index finger and thumb then rotated her head so that she was actually facing him. The blond smiled and leaned down a bit, pressing his forehead against hers.

"Just be patient, alright? And hopefully he says it's okay."

Kushina's cheeks suddenly grew read as she thought about what he was saying, and she started fiddling with her red obi. Her heart started beating, not rapidly, but more than enough for her to take notice right away. She looked over at him when she heard a soft 'come on', and then shyly followed him down the steps.

_Is he talking about marriage...?_ Her eyes grew wide at the thought, and she could feel more blood pool in her cheeks, so she quickly shook her head, as if doing so would rid her mind of the idea. _No, no! I'm not even 20, and even then... But... A couple generations back, people got married at 15... Argh, what am I even thinking?_

_I need to focus!_ Kushina thought with assurance, lightly slapping both of her cheeks. _We're going to go training with Rin guys... Focus! _

"Are you alright?" Minato asked as he looked back at her, his leisure stroll paused so that the kunoichi could catch up.

"Hahaha, yeah, feeling fine!" Kushina jogged to catch up, clinging to his arm and resting her head against his shoulder then angling it so that Minato wouldn't be able to see the line of blush across her face. "Come on, we wouldn't want to keep them waiting!"

"We've got some time to kill." Minato smiled down at her, joyous at the fact that Kushina was clinging to him... and only him, he added in his head. "So, I was going to show you the general layout of the back hills.. that way you won't get lost... You know, like when you first came to the village."

"Thanks..." Kushina mumbled, exhaling a soft huff and looking away, though she still clung to his arm. Without looking she could tell that Minato was smiling at her in amusement, but she supposed he had every right to; He'd probably be just as lost if he was sent to another village that was just as big as Konoha... without a guide, of course. She sighed and shook her head. "How much of the village _haven't_ I seen yet?"

"That all depends on where Sae-san has taken you, I suppose..." Minato mused to himself, raising his free hand to rub at his chin, blue gaze trailing upwards in an idle motion. "Well there's a whole bunch of small stuff to look at, but I think you've seen everything, for the most part."

"Mm..." Kushina hummed. "When we're both free next time, could you show me more places?"

"Of course..." Minato smiled down at her, though she wasn't looking up at him, so he returned his gaze to the front. At the idle pace they were going at, they would arrive at the back hills in 20 minutes or so. Even then, there would be more than enough time to show Kushina the general layout of the grounds.

The blond smiled and exhaled a content sigh. His eyes trailed up to the path ahead, and then eventually his line of sight wandered up to the sky. It was peaceful, even with the hot air hanging down on the village. It was a nice feeling; spending time with Kushina, without having to worry about rushing off to battle... Okay, maybe he worried about the latter, but with the responsibility of students on his shoulders, he wouldn't be sent out unless it was an emergency. But other than that, he felt at ease; even more so with Daylian promising to actually think about his earlier proposal. The very thought made him smile, and he allowed another content sigh to roll off his tongue.

Kushina was dozing slightly as she walked along side of the blond, her arm still wrapped around his. She was no longer resting her head against his shoulder once the pace to their walk was set, but she still stuck closely to his side. Her eyes swept across the streets to their side, taking in the little details she probably wouldn't have noticed before; the small, sunken footpaths that were created from years of customers walking the same course... the small plants the occasional shopkeeper would place outside to make their shop more appealing... and the people who would walk along the side of the road, peering into the stores to see if anything would catch their interest...

The kunoichi's quiet doze was eventually broken when her gaze fell upon another woman, probably a couple of years older than she was. It was quite obvious that the woman was staring, and it made Kushina rather uncomfortable. Though Minato's pace didn't miss a step, so it was clear that he either didn't notice or mind.

As they slowly walked past the woman, it became more and more evident that she was staring at the blond. Kushina gave a small frown, and almost instinctively tightened her grip on him, carefully eying the villager. As if sensing the kunoichi's gaze, the woman's eyes slithered down to Kushina, before she gave a disappointed expression and even narrowed her eyes slightly.

_He's mine. _Kushina's light smirk told her, and she even turned her head to continue her gloating. The woman only huffed and turned her head to the front, stiffly pointing her nose up in the air and strolling away, though her pace quickened slightly.

The red-haired kunoichi stuck out her tongue in victory, turning her own head back to the front and pressing her temple against Minato's shoulder.

"Hey, Minato?" She angled her head so that she could look up at him, smiling a bit as she did so.

"...? Hm?" The blond blinked out of his daze and looked down at the kunoichi, gifting her with another blink and then returning the smile.

"I love you."

"I love you too." Minato chuckled and dipped his head to nuzzle hers. "Now, come on. We're just about there... I still need to show you the back hills."

* * *

"Alright, I'll see you in a couple days, then, Kushina-san, sensei!" Obito called over his shoulder as he started jogging down the street, his torso twisted so that he could wave at them before dashing off.

"We might train at the back hills again, but I'll keep you guys posted!" Minato cupped his hand to call after the Uchiha, before lowering his arm back down.

Kakashi had decided to stay back and continue solo training (Minato mentally noted to check up the grounds later just in case, to make sure Kakashi didn't push himself too far and pass out in the forest), so they only walked Rin to the half-way point of her house, and walked along with Obito for a bit until he claimed that he could get back from there.

The sun was beginning to set, the last few minutes of sunlight slowly slipping away from the village and being swallowed by the darkening night sky. The couple had walked along leisurely in silence, enjoying each other's company, until Minato noticed a couple of stars beginning to blink into view.

"Come on... Let's get you home." Minato murmured as he wrapped an arm around Kushina's waist, leaning down to peck her cheek softly. As he said this, he had the strongest urge to contradict his previous statement and keep her out longer.. perhaps stare out at the village from the top of the Stone faces.

But, he knew he'd have to stay on Daylian's good side until the older ninja decided upon the proposal.

_Soon enough._ Minato thought. He would just have to be patient a little longer... and then, perhaps, within the next year or so, he could be _living_ with her under the same roof.

"Oh... alright." It was obvious with her tone that the kunoichi was also disappointed, but she never said anything more. Minato figured that she was rather tired herself and wanted to go rest up for the remainder of the night.

They strolled in silence, fingers twined together in a silent gesture of their affection. Occasionally they would turn to shyly kiss each other, savoring their time together before they would have to part until next time. Subconsciously, their grips on each other's hands tightened as Retsuya's small, dimly-lit garden came into view, the clearest indication that they were at Kushina's home. Minato could hear her exhale a disappointed sigh and felt her pace begin to slow, but he continued his rhythm and guided her up the steps, stopping at the top one and looking down at her with a sheepish smile.

"Come on." He murmured, carefully adjusting his hand so that it was beneath hers as she climbed the last couple of steps. The blond smiled as charmingly as he could, tenderly lifting her hand up so that he could kiss the back of it. He received the response he was expecting; Kushina's face grew red in a shy blush, and she avoided his gaze.

Minato chuckled and pulled her into a hug, one hand around her waist while the other was stroking the back of her head to soothe her flustered composure. He felt her squirm and eventually her arms found their way around his torso, clinging tightly to the back of his flak vest, making a contented sigh slip from his lips.

He pulled away after what felt like only seconds, when in reality they had been holding one other for several minutes.

"I'll swing by tomorrow, okay?" The blond smiled down at her to wipe away her disappointed expression. It took a few moments for Kushina to smile back, although it wasn't as bright as Minato's.

"Okay."

Kushina's lifted mood brightened his smile ten-fold, and he chuckled. He leaned down and angled the kunoichi's head by tilting her chin up, giving her a soft kiss before he would depart for the night. "I love you."

"I love you too." Kushina replied back with a small smile, gazing up at him and then turning her head to watch him skip down the steps. She raised her hand and returned her wave with a curt one of her own, and then trailed over to the entrance of her shared apartment.

She slipped inside in silence, her gaze wandering over to Daylian, who was leisurely sitting on the bed, his back turned, and slouching forward to peer out the window. Though as soon as he heard the door close, his posture improved and he looked over his shoulder to greet her.

"Hey-"

"I'm back." Kushina cut off, unintentionally. She had just spoken a split-second earlier, was all.

The redhead stifled a yawn while she lazily used her feet to slip off her zori, sliding them together neatly before she stepped inside.

"... I was saying 'hey' in a 'hey, we need to talk' kind of way, not 'hey welcome back'." Daylian used his arms to spin himself around nimbly, his feet now on the edge of the bed and facing the kunoichi.

What her brother-by-law said instantly piqued her curiosity, making her subconciously tilt her head to the side with a confused expression. After a couple of quick thoughts, she blinked and adopted a cautious look. "I'm not in trouble, am I?"

"Huh...? Uh, no, no. Nothing like that." Daylian thought for a second on how she arrived upon a conclusion such as that, and figured it was his own fault. He shook his head as he denied that she was in trouble, his violet eyes flickering to the dining chair as if it were a silent order to sit down, which she did, slowly.

There was a prolonged silence in the air, making Kushina fidget and tap her finger against the table top, to at least make some sort of sound. Occasionally, she would look up, and find Daylian staring down at his feet with arms folded and focus on his facial features. The kunoichi angled her head, once more, in curiosity, trying to decipher his expression.

Daylian probably had to tell her something really weird, and was having a hard time forming the words. From there, her mind wandered into all different sorts of scenarios, some rather ridiculous while others a little more plausible.

Finally, the man spoke,

"... You.. remember this morning, right?" He asked, lifting his gaze just in time to see Kushina dip her head into an unsure nod. He paused again and then looked down once more, struggling on how to go about it. Daylian sighed heavily and pinched the bridge of his nose. "He wanted my permission for something..."

"..." Kushina slowly nodded, as if beckoning him to go on.

"..." Daylian fell silent once more, before he grunted a bit and sighed. "He... asked if I could let you move in with him." He sighed heavily once more after, and then wildly ruffled his own black hair, as if he were still trying to decide last second whether he was okay with it or not.

".. He... huh?" There was a long pause before the kunoichi managed to answer, and she even turned around to see if she would find Minato standing at the doorway with a joking grin on his face. But as she looked over her shoulder, she found that there was, indeed, no one standing there, concluding that it was just the two of them in the apartment.

"You heard right." Daylian mumbled, resting an elbow on his lap so that he could place his chin in his palm. "Personally, I'm still... thinking about it, but I figured I'd ask... Are you that comfortable with him?"

"Comfortable enough...?" Kushina asked, rotating her head back to the front. Her line of sight trailed down, growing blank as her mind swam in thoughts. "What do you mean by comfortable...?"

"To... well, see him every day." Daylian started, and he tried his best to hold back a sigh. "It's not uncommon for patience to be tested with couples who move in with each other... Like... they get tired of seeing each other, basically."

"..." The corner of Kushina's mouth twitched into a small frown. "... Would you really let me...?"

"Only if you're a hundred percent sure." Daylian got up from the bed, his footsteps soft as he walked past the kunoichi. "But it's not something as simple as deciding what you're going to wear for the day. You don't have to give an answer right away- I won't tell Minato the answer until you're absolutely sure... In the mean time... just think deeply about it, alright?" While he spoke the last couple of lines, he placed a hand on the younger kunoichi's shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze before continuing on to approach the counter. "Want something to eat?"

"... Later..." Kushina mumbled, craning her head slightly so that she could speak over her shoulder. "I'm going to go shower up first..."

"Two showers in a row?" Daylian snorted. "Well, alright."

"Yeah." The kunoichi was already up on her feet and gathering her night clothes, ambling into the bathroom and shutting the door behind her. As she dumped the material onto the counter, she looked up at the mirror and found her face a bright red, almost half the color of her hair.

_Move in with him...?

* * *

_

**Author(ess)'s Notes:  
Kiki: **There were a couple of filler episodes in the recent anime, with Iruka and Academy-student Naruto. At one point the setting was some place called the 'back hills', so I decided to add them to the story despite the fact that they're fillers... since all the places in the fit are a little overdone by now. xD

I'm really sorry for the long time between this chapter and the last. ;o; I really am. But I've been studying my brains out trying to pass Algebra 2. (And there is hope! I have a D! xD' So far...) Hopefully I won't be too swamped constantly to type up this fic.

And thanks for your reviews, guys. You're all very kind. n.n

It's another slow chapter, but there is some progress! ;D So things will start to get in motion for a little bit. It's gonna be a rather leisure time for the both of them, but I promise there will be more action (cough) later on. And I mean battle wise, too. -book'd-


	38. Promise Me

**Chapter XXXVIII: Promise Me**

"Move in with him?"

Kushina almost instantly regretted telling Sae, but, quite frankly, the blond was the only one she could turn to. (Oh, and Mikoto, of course.) Because, sadly enough, Kushina wasn't able to face Minato for the past couple of days, and she finally gave up and went to seek the guidance of her (much more knowledgeable) friends. Surely, they would be able to give her a gentle push in one direction or the other, right...?

"Well, I guess it isn't too surprising..." Sae finally sat back down from where she had practically jumped up to her feet. "You guys _have_ been together for a long time, after all..." She rubbed her chin in a mocking manner, raising a brow and eying her red haired friend suspiciously, immediately making Kushina lean away from the blond.

"Have you guys... well... y'know...?"

".. I.. no, I don't know..." And Kushina honestly meant it; she had no idea what the florist was implying, only making her frown crookedly with nervousness. Her brown-red eyes trailed over to Mikoto for help, and the Uchiha almost immediately intervened upon receiving the look.

"Sae-chan.." Mikoto spoke the blond's name with a warning tone, folding her arms and giving her a serious look. Almost immediately upon seeing the uncommon look, Sae squirmed and sat back down on the cushion, crossing her legs in a casual way before she huffed softly.

"Sorry..."

Mikoto merely dipped her head to show that she acknowledged the apology, and then quietly turned her attention back to Kushina.

"So, Namikaze-kun asked you to move in with him, did he?"

"Uhh.. Well, he asked my brother's permission, who told me to think about it... and... well..." Kushina's shoulders slumped, and she hung her head. Her fingers drummed idly on her crossed ankles, a shy frown on her face, though she hid it from the two. She raised one of her hands to tuck away a lock of her hair behind her ear. "Here I am... Because, well..." She trailed off, unsure of how to form the words.

"Because..." Mikoto continued, thinking for a few seconds. "You wanted to ask us if it's a good idea?"

"I... yeah, I think. Er, I mean..." Kushina ruffled her own hair, making it slightly messy in her frustration. "Do you think moving in together is rushing it?"

"Well, yes-" Sae was about to state, but was cut off with a groan by Kushina, so she quickly raised a hand to stop the redhead from going on further. "I didn't finish.. Yes, it's rushing it, but _only_ if the couple has been dating for a few months... and you two have been together for _years_... You guys are practically married already!" Sae looked as though she were about to continue, but stopped at the last sentence, and slowly turned her gaze over to Mikoto, who was tilting her head forward in a curious manner.

The two shared a long silence, questioning one another with their eyes and making Kushina wonder how they were able to do that. Her gaze switched to and fro between the two other girls, frowning occasionally when their facial expressions changed, even the slightest bit.

_You think he's going to use moving in as a cushion for a proposal? _Sae's eyes asked.

_Possibly, but I don't think Namikaze-kun would rush into marriage, even _if _they've been together for some time... _Mikoto glimpsed over at Kushina, and returned her line of sight to Sae just as the redhead kunoichi looked her way.

_Maybe he's going to test the waters? See how if it works out while they're living together?_

_It _is_ the second ultimate test for couples, behind marriage itself, so that seems plausible.. Though I think they'll get through it- Namikaze-kun's quite patient, and polite.. _

Sae tilted her head forward slightly, almost completely forgetting the fact that Kushina was still sitting there and waiting for them to finish their silent conversation. _Yeah.. and Kushina would probably be more shy and stuff at first, and when things settle down, one thing will lead to another, and soon enough I'll have two adorable children to babysit! _

_Yes- No! I mean..! Sae-chan, focus on the present, here... Kushina-chan really needs our help, and we don't want to scare her by mentioning a kid, since she might assume that moving in might immediately make her a soon-to-be mother. _

_I know that.. I was just pointing it out... Besides! She can't read our eyes!_ Sae gave a triumphant hump and smile, folding her arms and earning a very confused look from Kushina, eliciting a giggle from the blond. _But, we should just let her go through with it, and warn of her any possibilities just so that she doesn't come running to us and point fingers._

_Sounds reasonable._

"Are you guys done... uh... thinking?" Kushina asked once the two women shared a mutual nod of agreement, the corner of her mouth twitching. "How do you guys do that anyway?"

"In time, you will learn how to, young grasshopper." Sae grinned, though Kushina deadpanned at her. "But, anyways, we both agreed that you should go through with it and move in with him."

"But," Mikoto interrupted before Kushina could even think. "You should be aware of some.. turbulent situations that typically happens when couples move in together."

Kushina slowly dipped her head forward, but then stopped mid-nod. "Like what?"

"Well, usually you end up finding out habits of theirs that you won't like... The most common being that they're messy, but I don't think that's the case with Namikaze-kun." Mikoto's onyx gaze wandered up at her ceiling absentmindedly as she thought more. "And I'm sure you can keep your things clean.."

"Another one is that the couple usually gets tired of seeing each other!" Sae immediately jumped back in, making Kushina jump since it had gone quiet for a couple of seconds. The redhead leaned back as Sae leaned forward, raising an index finger up to the kunoichi's face. "Sure, you guys may get missions since you're ninjas, but even then...! Don't be afraid to ask us for a girl's day out!"

"We can get tired of seeing each other...?" Kushina asked, sounding somewhat doubtful at this. Quite frankly, she missed Minato on a daily basis- she couldn't imagine growing weary of the blond... _And Daylian said the same thing... about couples getting tired of each other. _

"Not at first, no... but some people start to think that they're too young to get tied down, and then arguments happen, then the fights can escalate..." Sae trailed off, backing away from Kushina and settled back down on the cushion she sat upon. "It's not wrong to ask for a little break from each other every now and then... Plus! You can't be neglecting us!"

"Why would I?" Kushina shot back. "... _How_ could I? You tackle me to the ground every time we see each other...!"

'Because there's always a big time lapse between the days we see each other!" Sae retorted with a fold of her arms, huffing a bit. Though her shoulders slowly fell into a relaxed position, and she grinned. "Though, it's nice... lately you've been coming to _us_ instead of the other way around."

There was a short silence, quickly broken by Mikoto's outgoing, "You're right!"

The Uchiha mother smiled warmly and rested her chin in her palm as she stared at her two younger friends with kind onyx eyes. "Seems like you're finally completely open with us."

Kushina slowly blinked. Now that the two mentioned it... she _has_ been coming around a lot lately; usually, like Sae said, there would be several weeks or even months between the times they would all meet up. Needless to say, it felt nice, having actual friends.. that were girls. Back in Uzu, she hung out with guys, because she was too tomboyish for the girls. In fact, the more she thought about it, the more she enjoyed being around girls who actually accepted her. It was nice being able to open up with her feelings and not get teased by guys about it; it was nice to be able to seek out help, instead of waiting for someone to notice that something was wrong.

Mikoto was right; she finally opened up on them, completely.

So the kunoichi gave a sincere smile, and answered the Uchiha kunoichi's comment.

"Well, of course... you guys are my best friends." And she meant it honestly. Kushina turned her head to look at Sae's reaction, and should have braced herself sooner, for the blond nearly tackled her down in an excited hug.

"Your best friends! Mikoto-chan, you heard that too, right?" Sae was giggling as she kept her friend pinned beneath her, her own arms wrapped around Kushina to keep her from escaping. She laughed once she heard a hum of agreement from their older friend, and sat up, helping Kushina push them both upright. The blond giggled and rocked back and forth with Kushina still in her arms, grinning almost idiotically with glee.

"Gosh, you don't know how happy that makes me feel, Kushina-chan," Sae exhaled a contented sigh. "I'd totally keep you here so we can have more girl time, but-"

"But she has to get going to tell Namikaze-kun, or rather, her brother first, that she's going to go through with the move." Mikoto interrupted, silencing the beaten Sae.

"I knowww..." Sae whined, and dejectedly released the red haired kunoichi. It was quite obvious she was sad that Kushina couldn't stay longer; her shoulders were slumped and she had a disappointed frown. So, Kushina grinned as happily as she could and got up to her feet, bending over and taking Sae's hand into hers.

"Hey, don't look as if I'm going to be gone forever...! I'll be back to tell you guys how it's going.. I promise!" Kushina then hoisted Sae up to her feet, supporting the blond and continuing to grin. As Sae gazed at the expression, she found the grin to be contagious and was soon finding herself smiling back.

"Promise?" Sae raised her other hand, since her right was still in Kushina's grasp, and extended a pinky. Kushina looked downwards at the motion, and released Sae's hand so that she could wrap her pinky around the blond's offered one, treating it like a handshake and giving it a firm dip.

"Promise." Kushina repeated with confidence and a bright grin.

* * *

She climbed the steps slowly, her movement lethargic from the humid air weighing down on her shoulders. She could feel her temples growing slick with unwanted sweat, and she had even gathered up her hair and twisted it onto her left shoulder just to let her neck breathe. Kushina fanned herself weakly with one hand, before she slowly angled her head back to look up at the sky briefly, groaning when she found that there wasn't a single cloud close enough to cover up the relentless sun. So, she grudgingly trudged her way up the steps, wiping off her perspiration with the back of her hand and the sleeve of her half robe.

A huge part of her regretted leaving Mikoto's house before the thick afternoon air dissipated, but she _did_ want to tell Daylian as soon as possible about her decision.

With that in mind, Kushina stumbled towards the door, grabbing the warm metal knob and opening it.

"I'm home-" The kunoichi stopped in the doorway as her eyes fell upon a bright-haired man, whose head turned in unison with Daylian's to look at the entrance.

Minato's expression brightened tenfold despite the oppressing weather, and he grinned in response to her appearance.

"Welcome back."

"Thanks.." Kushina closed the door behind her, fed up with the sunlight on her back. "I didn't know you were coming to visit." She mumbled, scraping off her sandals and wiping herself down as she took a couple of silent steps into the apartment. A huge part of her wanted to duck into the shower just so she could wash the sweat off her skin and cool off- with her lover here, she was suddenly conscious of how she possibly smelt. For a brief second she looked over at Daylian, who was sitting on the ground across from Minato, and found that he wasn't wrinkling his nose at her smell, so she assumed she didn't smell _so_ bad...

"I didn't know I was going to visit either," Minato grinned sheepishly and scratched the back of his head. "I sort of just swung by without thinking about it."

_That's a lie._ Daylian turned his violet gaze down from Kushina to the blond. Of course they were discussing Kushina possibly moving in Minato, but he figured that the blond didn't know that she already knew. The older ninja returned his line of sight back to the kunoichi, wondering if she had finally come upon a conclusion- It _had_ been several days, after all.

"So where did you run off to?" Daylian asked when things fell silent for a few moments.

"Oh, um..." Kushina fidgeted momentarily, her eyes drawn to the blond subconsciously before she forced her gaze to Daylian, unsure of what to say. "I was.. with Sae guys.. And we were talking..." She paused when she received a curt nod from Daylian, then continued on. "About the whole moving in thing..."

"You knew?" Minato, clearly, sounded startled and looked up at her with wide eyes. He lowered his head slightly, both embarrassed and partially bracing himself for the answer. "So..."

Kushina had to stop and composer herself before answering. It felt... surreal, somehow.. She tried to brush off the feeling for the time being, though she knew it would come back eventually. So she tried to keep the surreal-ness aside by smiling.

"If it's okay with Da-nii, then.. Yeah.. I'd love to."

Minato had gotten up so fast that she didn't even see him get up, so she was quite startled when she found that she was suddenly hugged tightly by the Jounin. In fact, he was so euphoric that he spun the kunoichi around and even lifted her up off her feet for a few seconds. His laughter was genuinely warm, and there wasn't any way that Kushina could keep herself from smiling broadly.

His laugh eventually faded into soft chuckles under his breath, and he slowed the spinning so that he could gaze up at her, the elation still dancing within his blue eyes.

Kushina had her hands on his shoulders to steady herself- despite Minato's strong arms holding her up- and only smiled back shyly as the initial glee receded. In the back of her mind, she felt as though she were forgetting something, until Daylian cleared his throat.

"I'm still here, you know."

Kushina slowly turned her head, and felt her feet touch the ground at the same time. Daylian's eyes were narrowed slightly, and his brow was quirked, though his sights were mostly set on the other man in the room.

Minato gave a half-nervous, half-apologetic smile, and removed his arms from around Kushina so that he could sit back down- although it was formally with his legs beneath him, rather than the casual position he had when Kushina first walked in.

"Sorry," The blond grinned sheepishly, and it was enough to lower Daylian's raised brow. "I just got a little carried away..."

"Right..." Daylian muttered, folding his arms. "So when exactly were you planning on snatching her from under my wing, hm?"

"Ah.." Minato glimpsed over at Kushina, partially because she chose to sit down next to him. He thought carefully, his mind flying for a couple of short seconds before he replied, "Whenever you wish... I'm still packing up most of my stuff and moving it into the new house anyway... Plus, and I'm sure it's going to take a while for Kushina to pack her things as well."

"Mm.." Daylian hummed in response as his own eyes trailed to Kushina when she was mentioned. "Well, all the furniture belonged to the landlord to begin with, so she doesn't really have all that much to pack.."

"Ah, that's great-" Minato started brightly, and at first he was going to say that Kushina would be able to move in faster, but as soon as he caught the look in Daylian's violet eyes, he stopped. "Err, rather.. I won't have to carry all that much, haha..."

Daylian only gave a small frown in response, as if to silently say that he caught Minato's correction. He exhaled a grunt and then unfolded his arms so that he could get up to his feet. "Right, well. I guess it would be best if you got to packing, 'Shina."

"Ah, then I can help-" Minato leaned back instinctively as Daylian raised a foot in a threat to kick him, the dirty foot an inch away from Minato's nose. The blond wrinkled his nose briefly, subconsciously holding his breath and then releasing it as Daylian lowered his foot.

"Go home." Daylian growled, his arms folding tightly as if to further secure his authorative position. "_I_'ll help." The black-haired ninja tossed his head towards the direction of the bathroom. "Wash up, 'Shina, and then we'll get started, alright?"

Kushina was rather surprised at all that had happened, especially with Daylian's sudden authorative figure. But she glimpsed over at Minato, then back at Daylian and gave an unsure nod.

"I'll see you later-"

"Tomorrow." Daylian corrected before she could finish.

"... Tomorrow, then." Kushina tried her best to refrain from starting an argument with Daylian, and gave the blond a small smile.

"Yeah." Minato heartedly returned the smile, raising his hand in a curt wave as she trailed obediently into the bathroom.

"Move it." Daylian immediately interrupted Minato's longing thoughts as soon as the bathroom door clicked shut, stepping forward and spinning the blond around by the shoulder. For a brief second, Minato tried to protest by digging in his heels, but stopped when Daylian squeezed his shoulder.

"Just let me savor the last night we'll be spending together."

"..." Minato dropped his gaze slightly at the rather somber tone, and placed his feet fully back on the ground to show that he was no longer resisting.

"I'm still trying to get used to the fact that I'll be living on my own."

"I'm not hiding her away and locking her up." Minato tried to chuckle to lift the older ninja's spirits. "And, I _know_ that she will miss you. You were her friend and brother long, long before I came into the picture. Why do you think I looked for an apartment that was close by?"

"..." Lethargically, Daylian released his grip on Minato, as if his heart had settled slightly. Minato almost turned his head to look over his shoulder, to see if Daylian was alright, but a snort stopped him.

"Thanks." Daylian tried to sound like his old self as he walked past Minato and towards the entrance of the apartment. The Jounin tilted his head forward as he watched Daylian, before he gave a weary smile and followed, knowing that the older ninja was showing him the door.

"No problem." Minato grinned to further lift the man's spirits, though Daylian only gave a half-hearted smile as he opened the door.

Then, Daylian's regular persona came out and the previous expression vanished. "Now get out. And don't stop by too early- I need to eat too, you know."

"Alright." Minato chuckled as he casually strolled out of the apartment, slipping his hands into his pockets. "See you tomorrow then."

"Y-ep." Daylian replied nonchalantly, giving him a single wave with one hand before closing the door with the other.

Despite how silently Kushina tried to open the entrance to the bathroom, Daylian could still hear it clearly.

"I thought I told you to take a shower." Daylian murmured without turning to face her.

Kushina fidgeted from the doorway to the restroom, clutching the wooden door slightly as she tried to find an answer. Though, it was hard for her lips to even begin forming the question she had wanted to ask him as soon as she overheard the two men.

Suddenly moving away was a lot harder than she thought; at first she was just nervous about moving in with Minato, but now she was rather... sad, after being reminded that she was leaving Daylian behind to live with her boyfriend. She even started to feel guilty when she overheard Daylian talk about adjusting to being on his own- and it didn't help that Minato stated that they had been together in Uzu before he had even come into their lives...

"Clean up and then we'll get to packing, alright? I'll start getting your weapons and stuff stored away safely with your scrolls." Daylian interrupted her thoughts by walking towards the dresser that they shared, and the fact that he didn't look at her didn't go unnoticed by the kunoichi.

Hesitantly, she stepped out from under the doorframe to follow him. "Da-nii...?"

"..." Daylian paused at this, before he resumed his movement of going through the drawers that contained their shared scrolls and weaponry. "Yeah?"

"..." She stopped before she reached the dining table, shoulders slumping from the oppressing weight of the emotion that hung down on them. Her eyes slowly trailed downwards, before she spotted Daylian carefully settled down on the wooden floor, sluggishly pulling open the bottom drawer.

"... Y'know, it's weird, getting you ready to move in with a boy," Daylian finally spoke through the silence, making Kushina turn her head to look at him. "Because I watched you grow it with us guys- it's a bit startling." He rotated his head slightly, as if he wanted to turn and look at her, but he stopped and returned his violet gaze down to the contents of the dresser. He fished out a couple of scrolls and some shuriken that needed sharpening.

"But, I'm sure if Suzu and Mizuiro were here, they'd be proud of you." Daylian continued when he received a soft sniff from Kushina. "For growing out of your tomboyish self... well, for the most part, anyway... And just finding someone you can be truly happy with..." As he murmured the last line, his head slowly tilted back to stare up at nothing in particular.

Kushina bit her lower lip to keep herself from choking out words that wanted to stumble out, and instead she quietly loped around the dining table to approach him. By the time she stood behind him, he had angled his head back down, as if to intentionally hide his face, so she exhaled a soft breath and turned around.

In silence, she sat down behind him and leaned back against him, feeling him tense up slightly in order to support her- just like he had for the years they had spent in Konoha together.

"Watching you grow up was fun, Kushina." Daylian murmured. "From that little girl that copied her brother, to a total tomboy, and then into a strong woman who actually grows out her hair." He had turned his head slightly as he felt her long, darkening red hair brush against his arm, as if on cue.

"..." Kushina was no longer fighting back the tears that had long since started to form, and let them roll freely down her cheeks as she listened to him. She slowly curled up, bringing her knees up to her chest and hugging them, all while being sure to keep her lower back connected to Daylian's. She softly sniffed and angled her head so that she could wipe her eyes on her forearm, resting in fetal position as her lower lip trembled.

She almost didn't want to move out now.

"Don't let me stop you, now." Daylian mumbled, as if reading her mind. "Minato's... he's a good guy.. I know he'll treat you right." Daylian's hands were gradually beginning to slow in pace, until he eventually just rested them on his lap. "But don't forget that guys need to be treated good too, alright?"

"Mhm.." Kushina could only manage a hum by that point, sniffling and wiping her eyes continually with the back of her hand.

Silence hung down on them once more, but the mood was no longer heavy as it was earlier; there was some sort of relief to it, but the sadness in the air was still notable.

It took a bit of effort to keep herself from completely breaking down on him, but it was difficult considering she heard a soft sniff from him every so often. So, she tried to compose herself, wiping away her tears and trying to suppress them in order to talk... or at least keep herself from choking on her breath.

Finally, after several dragging minutes passed, Daylian straightened his back slightly in a silent statement, so Kushina leaned forward so that her back wasn't pressed against his. She wiped away whatever trails her tears had left behind while Daylian got up to his feet.

"Sorry," He started, trying to sound like his old self. "For a while it felt like when Suzu moved out.." He took a deep breath, and then held out a hand in an offer to help her up off the lightly-dusty ground.

She looked up at him with bleary eyes and then took his offer willingly, getting pulled up to her feet. As soon as she steadied herself, she hugged him tightly; the move so sudden that he took half a step back in order to keep them from falling over.

"..." Daylian's eyes lost the initial surprise, and were soon calmed as he silently raised his arm and draped it over Kushina's shoulders. He closed his eyes, and patiently waited for Kushina's sniffling to subdue. When there were long seconds of intervals between each sniff, he spoke.

"You know what else I remember from when Suzu moved out?" He asked, placing both hands on her shoulders to carefully pull her away from the hug. She looked up at him with confused eyes, a small, sad frown on her face. "She asked us to smile as we saw her off... So why shouldn't it be the same for you?"

"..." Kushina's lower lip slowly started to quiver as the words sunk in, though she tried her best to smile at the thought. Even with her attempt to make herself happy, a few tears strayed and skirted down her cheeks, so she dipped her head forward and leaned into another hug.

As Daylian's arm slung around her shoulders once more, she felt more at ease. She knew it would still be difficult, and that she would tear up when she would leave the apartment, but knowing that he would be seeing her off with a smile, rather than a sorrowful expression, calmed her heart. Kushina inhaled and exhaled shaky breathes, and smiled sincerely.

"Thank you..."

* * *

"Alright..."

The blond angled his head to his left in order to see around the two boxes he carried, turning around and searching for a suitable place to store them for the time being. He found a corner that was occupied by a large box, and decided that it would do. He placed them down carefully, and then dusted his hands off as he straightened himself, ignoring the small cracks that elicited from his back.

Minato unrolled one of his sleeves in order to wipe his forehead, and then scanned the room. It was a bedroom, fairly large for a house of its price- a couple of windows, a small closet, a dresser or two, and nightstands on both sides of the bed- which was big enough for two. He chuckled to himself shyly, and then went to slide open one of the windows to let some air into the stuffy room.

He would unpack the necessities in a bit- right now he needed a break from the constant travels between his previous house and the new one.

... Well of course he cheated a bit so he couldn't call them 'travels'.

Minato's blue gaze flickered to the Hiraishin kunai he had left on the ground, lowering to pick it up so that he wouldn't step on it later. He hummed a bit as he twirled the weighted knife by the ring, placing it on a dresser as he passed to leave the room.

For the most part, he was done moving. He just needed to go back and clean the other house before talking to the estate broker, which didn't need to be done by the end of the week, actually. He was several days ahead of time.

Minato trailed down the hall, although there wasn't much of one, given the size of the house, so he was in the living room within a few strides.

He immediately noticed the lack of movement in the larger room, so his gaze instantly flickered to the couch and he smiled at the sight.

Kushina was passed out on the comfortable piece of furniture, one leg folded over the other and a small photo album in her hands, indicating that she had fallen asleep while perusing the pages. Scattered across the living room were empty boxes, so Minato knew she must have been working hard and decided to take a breather by looking through the album.

He chuckled and stepped into the room, gathering up the empty boxes while he scanned the room. It was decorated simply- candles here and there, a decent-sized table in front of the couch, reading lamps, book shelves crammed with his books, the occasional plant.. the dining table and chairs were also placed in a certain part of the living room, close to the walk-in kitchen.

Speaking of kitchen...

Minato looked over at Kushina, and then placed the empty boxes in the corner, _for now_ he told himself for the umpteenth time that day, and then quietly walked into the tiled area to fetch a pair of chilled water bottles for the both of them. He put the bottles on the table, and then sat on the floor between the short table and the couch.

He found himself grinning rather stupidly, but he couldn't help himself; after all, the girl he loved so dearly was moved in with him. It was a nice feeling- and he remembered that he wasn't quite as euphoric as this since... well, since they had first started going out, probably.

Minato raised a hand to brush back a couple of stray strands of her red hair, observing her peaceful expression. He exhaled a contented sigh and smiled. He had a warm, fluttering feeling in his chest, but he couldn't be blamed, right? It was something new to experience... _together_.

He used the back of his fingers to trace the contours of her cheeks and jaw line, before he eventually gave in to the urge and leaned in to press his lips against her soft ones.

Her eyelids fluttered open at the touch, her mind drowsily processing the scene before she smiled softly and returned the kiss. She smiled further when Minato chuckled under his breath and pulled away.

"Sorry for waking you."

"Sorry for falling asleep..." Kushina replied with an apology of her own, using her arms to sit up. She rubbed her eye and then scanned the living room, before looking back down at him. "Though I did get a lot done."

"That you did." Minato agreed with a nod and a smile, reaching back to retrieve one of the bottles so that he could offer it to her; which she took willingly.

Kushina curled her knees up to her chest as she sipped the cool liquid, feeling the water travel into her system and refresh her. She hummed a bit and took in a couple of mouthfuls, before capping it and handing the bottle back to him. "How much more have we got to do?"

"... Quite a lot." Minato gave a weary laugh, and then got to his feet after transferring the bottle back onto the table. "Though I moved the last of the boxes here, so we've made quite a bit of progress for a day's work."

Kushina chuckled and then swung her legs around so that she could place her feet on the ground, stretching her arms by holding them above her head, before getting up. "Well, I feel better after that nap, so I think we can get most of the stuff unpacked before tonight."

"Yeah," Minato agreed, wrapping an arm around her waist. He brought her close and dipped his head so that he could kiss her cheek, his face lingering there before he chuckled softly. "I love you... I promise you won't regret this, Kushina..."

Kushina looked at him from the corner of her eyes, before she turned her head and kissed him while he still had his head lowered to her height. The couple both had smiles on their face, though Kushina's one gradually formed into a grin.

"I love you too.. Now, come on... We can get most of the boxes unpacked before sunset."

* * *

**Author(ess)'s Notes:  
Kiki: **I, personally, am wondering how Sae and Mikoto had that silent conversation, myself. xD

But, I'm sorry I haven't been able to stick to a bi-weekly schedule like I used to. u-u' School's difficult, as always. Ugh. Sometimes it just drains me so much that when I try to open a document, nothing note-worthy can come out...

Anyways, I really wish some of you would stop reviewing anonymously, so that I can reply to and thank you guys properly for dropping a review to begin with. xD

**Oh, also, I have another poll up for you guys in my profile**. Deals with the future.. -cough- Sex and whatnot, so it'd be nice if I got your guys' opinions on that too. xD' Righto.

Sorry if the chapter seemed rushed at some parts. ;o; And I'm sorry the chapter is a little shorter than the rest. -is just full of apologies- OTL  
I'll do my best to try and get the next chapter out as soon as possible! ;o; Thank you all for your encouraging reviews- I mean it. n.n


	39. Lucky

**(Note: From now on, any chapters marked with * will have mature content, so reader discretion is advised.)**

***Chapter XXXIX: Lucky**

All he wanted was sleep, honestly. After a few days of unpacking and organizing, he was tired enough as is, but then the frontlines required his _immediate_ aid. And so he went, avoiding traps that were meant to kill him, saved the Konoha platoon from being annihilated, the usual. And, since he was oh-so-conveniently fast, he had to help carry several injured ninjas to the hospital. Of course they made him make returning trips as well.

And he had gone so long without any disturbing nightmares, either...

Minato groaned from where he sat up in the bed, bringing his legs up so that he could rest his head from the dizzy spells that occasionally accompanied the night terrors. He found himself panting slightly, and of course he had bead or two of sweat trailing down from his temple, making his hair stick to his jaw line just slightly.

_God dammit._ He was close to subconsciously going out for a walk again, but the bed shifted beneath him and he turned his head.

Kushina had her face half-buried in a pillow that she hugged, and she looked at him with drowsy eyes.

".. What's wrong?" She tilted her head back so that her tired voice wouldn't be muffled by the pillow.

Although it was horrible to admit, Minato almost forgot that he was now living with her. Even _if_ the nightmares were the reasons for the idea to move in with her...

"I, uh... Periodically get nightmares about the war.." Minato murmured, resting his head back onto his folded arms. "I didn't mean to wake you." And he didn't; he was honestly going to go fetch a warm drink or go take a walk to ease his mind, but he supposed the way he jolted upright must have woke her..

He heard her sniff a bit and exhale a soft moan as she stretched, before she slowly moved a bit, though she rested her head against his lower torso, too tired to sit up with him. "Wanna talk about it?" She mumbled, stifling a yawn and doing her best to keep her eyes open.

"No.. no.." Minato mumbled, rubbing one of his eyes and then shaking his head. "I forgot most of it as I woke up... Now I'm just a little spooked.." Half of it was a lie- he didn't want to give Kushina any disturbing mental images that could seep into her dreams.

"You sure?" She sounded a little more awake than when she asked her previous question, and then even lazily raised a hand to rub his shivering back. Minato did his best to relax himself at her motion, letting his shoulders drop slightly before he exhaled softly. He straightened his legs and lowered his arms, turning his head to look at the kunoichi, eyes carefully adjusting to the dark so that he could see her face.

Kushina had angled her head upwards so that she could look at him, giving him a tired smile. She used the same hand that was on his back to tug on his shirt, slowly pulling him back down.

"C'mon... Sitting up won't help you feel better.." Kushina flopped her head back down onto her own pillow, laughing softly as she stretched comfortably and squirmed on the comfortable mattress.

Minato only obediently lowered himself on his back, staring up at their ceiling blankly before he exhaled, trying to dispel the dark thoughts with the breath. He looked over at Kushina and then raised an arm over her resting head, in which she replied by rolling over and pressing up against him, squirming to get comfortable. Once she did, she lowered her head onto his torso, and he snaked an arm over her shoulders to hold her closer.

"... You know, it's okay if you wanna talk about it..." Even with Kushina's voice hushed, her words cut through the silent air. "Even in the middle of the night like this..."

"..." Minato knew he couldn't look down and meet Kushina's gaze, so he didn't bother to tilt his head or even look down- the top of her head would be the only thing that could be seen, lest she tilted it far back to try and look at him. The blond shook his head, and used his thumb to slowly rub circles in Kushina's shoulder. "It's alright... and the nightmares are a little too... graphic.. anyway.."

"..." Kushina fell silent, though she didn't fall asleep like Minato thought she would have. Instead she used her own index finger to trace invisible lines into his chest, slowly trailing down and feeling the ridges of his rather sculpted abs.

Kushina found herself blushing quite a bit, but she quickly trailed her finger back up to his chest- so that she wouldn't get as distracted as she would if she were touching his abs.

".. Between you and me, I still get nightmares too.." Kushina whispered.

Minato lifted his head as to look at her, but then placed it back down on his pillow when she didn't look back at him. He came _really_ close as to asking what they were about, but the memory hit him pretty hard, so he clamped shut. He only gave her a reassuring squeeze of her shoulder, though he was surprised when he didn't hear any sniffling coming from her.

"I think Da-nii knew about it too..." She continued. ".. Though we never really talked about it, at all..."

"... How come?" Minato ventured to ask when she trailed off. He released her shoulder when she squirmed, turning over so that she was partially on her stomach and looking at him.

"Because Uzu's fall affected him more; there was a girl he loved."

Minato nearly felt his heart drop down into his stomach, creating a brief moment of nausea. He had absolutely no idea that...! He could only imagine what Daylian must have gone through... and here he was, getting worked up over nightmares about Kushina being wounded or KIA, where in reality Daylian _actually_ lost a lover...

The blond swallowed a lump in his throat and bit his lower lip, suddenly guilty.

Kushina seemed to have sensed this and removed her hand from his chest, raising an index finger to his lips. "Shh... Don't think about it.."

Minato wasn't sure if Kushina was talking about Daylian, or for him to stop thinking about what it would be like to lose her... But he only gave a curt, obedient nod as he tried to push aside the dark thoughts. He lifted his hand and brushed it over her shoulders, before running his fingers through her long hair. Finally, he moved his hand from the back of his head to cup her cheek, and it was only then that he realized the close proximity their faces were- not that he minded.

"I'm lucky to have you..." He breathed, his thumb softly rubbing her cheek, before he moved his face closer to kiss her. He heard her give a contented moan, and it was more than enough for him.

So much for getting back to sleep.

Of course, he wouldn't jump into anything right away.. so, tentatively, he slipped his tongue between his lips, and, much to his surprised, she more than willingly obliged.

Her hands glided along the planes of his chest until they found a comfortable spot on his collar bone, using the holding to pull herself deeper into the kiss, angling her head opening her mouth to allow more entrance for his tongue.

Their tongues wrestled, and they did their best to keep their hums suppressed when one or the other would pull away to look into their eyes.

Kushina pulled away the next time, sticking her tongue out of her mouth when a thin thread of saliva clung to the small gap between their tongues. Minato gave the softest of chuckles and closed the space between them, pecking her softly and getting rid of the proof of their fondling tongues. He smiled at her, his hands roaming down to her waist.

Kushina gave a soft squeak of surprise when Minato suddenly hoisted her up on top of him, eyes wide from the suddenness of it and the fact that she was _on top_ of him. As she squirmed slightly to get comfortable, she could feel his toned muscles beneath her softer stomach. She felt the heat creep up from her neck and onto her face, and she quickly lowered her head to bury her flustered expression into his chest.

She could feel his torso vibrate as he suppressed a few chuckles, and then felt one of his arms wrapping around her lower waist to keep her there. His other hand brushed the side of her face, slowly prompting her to look up, his hand then moving to take her chin and lift it a bit more so that she was looking at him. Kushina knew there was still a thick line of blush on her face, and it probably got darker when she saw Minato's amused smile. _Thank god it's dark-_

"Beautiful..." Minato interrupted her thoughts with a fervent whisper, using the back of his knuckles to stroke her warm cheeks, then dipped his head forward to resume the kissing. His hand travelled from stroking her cheek to tracing her jaw line, and eventually made its way to the back of her head to pull her in closer.

His other hand was gently stroking her hair, then it moved down to massage small circles in her back, and then slowly, daringly, moved down past the dip of her lower back and upwards again onto her butt- only to withdraw his hand quickly when Kushina gave a startled squeak which, admittedly, startled him as well.

"S.. Sorry," Minato quickly apologized, though the disappointment was rather thick in his tone- which was completely unintentional- after all, it was his near-mindless cock that had added the tone in.

"No... no.." Kushina, who had buried her face into his chest as soon as she squeaked, mumbled in her own apologetic tone. Minato could practically feel the heat where her face was pressed against his torso. "I, uh... just never been... I've never had my ass touched before.. except by my parents, but they were slapping it for punishment, so that doesn't count..."

She squirmed a bit from where she was laying on top of him, and then slowly peered up. "... I was just surprised... You can.. keep going.." She whispered.

The corner of Minato's mouth twitched as he fought against his teenage hormones to keep himself in check, and then sighed. He moved the hand that had tried roaming down to her butt and put it around his neck to hug her. Minato brought his face in close, but then pressed his forehead against hers and closed his eyes.

"I'll only go as far as you want me to... If you don't feel comfortable, just say so, and I'll stop..." He murmured, and of course the small, provocative part of him was protesting by kicking and screaming in the back of his head. And, as much as he wanted to go along with that part of him, he pushed it aside.

"..." Kushina's gaze slowly trailed back down to his chest, where she had started to draw some swirls with her index finger. "It's not that I'm uncomfortable.. I'm just... shy."

Minato quietly listened to her words as they tripped over one another, and a small part of him knew that she was uncomfortable, despite saying she wasn't. He gave a near-inaudible chuckle and then kept his arm securely around Kushina's waist, using his other arm to push them both upright. Kushina quickly caught on and folded her legs beneath her, sitting between his legs and shyly peering up at him while he stretched his arms.

"Then we'll take it slow, alright?" He told her after he was done stretching, and giving her a soft smile to reassure her. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and easily pulled her into a hug, then breathed in deeply to calm himself. "It's the least I can do... since I'm already asking too much of you.."

"N, no.. It's alright.."

God, the way she looked so flustered and shy was so cute...

She interrupted his thoughts by leaning back slightly so that she could kiss him, and the will that kept his provocative mind in check almost withered away.

Minato's other hand was raised up to her face to cup it, angling her head so that he could deepen the fervent kissing. The more their tongues danced together, the more he wanted to do; and his hands had subconsciously started to roam again, from her shoulders to trace the curves of her waist and hips.

He rubbed his thumb against the fabric of her night shirt, cracking his eyes open a little only to find that hers were closed. Nevertheless, he kept his eyes open slightly just to see her reactions; he wanted to see her gasp in surprise and try not to moan, and.. and..

_Calm down..._ Minato ordered himself, though his hands shook slightly as he slowly, cautiously, slipped his fingers beneath the article of clothing, which he then realized was thin and flimsy in order to beat the summer's warm nights.

_She's really warm..._ Minato's own face flushed with warmth. He continued to run his hands over the smooth curves of her waist, marveled by how soft her skin was.

Up and down his hands roamed, and finally at the fifth dip, he paused momentarily before slowly trailing up again, this time passing her rib cage and stopping beneath her mounds, and just in time for her to pull away from the kiss with a startled breath. Minato caught glimpses of her flustered expression before she buried it in the nook of his shoulder and neck.

"... Can I?" He breathed to her, and a huge part of him expected her to use the hands that were on his chest to push him away.

So his heart pretty much stopped beating for a second or two when she gave him a quiet nod.

The blond bit his lip in a reminder to keep his self-control in check, and swallowed a forming lump in his throat as he slowly moved his hands upwards to gently grope her breasts.

_They're really soft..._ Were pretty much his first coherent thoughts.

Minato could clearly hear Kushina gulp from where she continued to rest her head on his shoulder, exhaling near-inaudible sounds along with shaky breaths. Minato nuzzled the side of his head against hers in a comforting motion, though he wasn't sure if it was consoling her.

Though his mind reeled him back to his tempting desires as his thumb brushed over one of her nipples, which immediately made Kushina inhale sharply. The sudden hitch in her breathing of course made Minato stop, though she gave no word or move for him to stop, so he carried on.

His thumbs gently massaged the curing nubs, which was more than enough to entice a stifled moan from her.

Oh god... He just wanted to find out what other sounds he could pull from her, especially if he-

He felt a bit of pressure on his chest, so almost immediately he removed his hands from her breasts, slipping them out from beneath her shirt with eyes that widened slightly.

"I-I'm sorry..!" Minato breathed, withdrawing his hands from her body, to which she replied by pulling her arms up to her chest, as if to hide them as she looked away shyly. In the dim lighting, he could see that her face was darkly colored. He mentally hit himself, cursing inwardly at his impulsive behavior. And to think, if he had gone further, Kushina might have flat out rejected him, or, or...!

"I... I'm going to go take a cold shower," Minato murmured, scooting himself away from the kunoichi and then swinging his legs over the side of the bed to get up. Before he could even get up after placing his feet on the ground, he felt Kushina's arms around his waist.

"I'm not mad..!" Kushina told him, and her voice was slightly shrilled with worry. "I just... I'm not used to..."

".. I'm sorry," Minato gave her a weary smile, and placed a hand over one of hers. "We'll go slowly, okay?" He murmured, gently rubbing the back of her hand with his thumb. "Go to sleep for now.. there are still a couple of hours left until the sun rises.."

"..." Kushina hesitantly nodded from where she had pressed herself up against his sculpted back, before slowly removing her arms and slinking off onto her side of the bed. While she was doing this, Minato quickly reached into his sweat pants so that he could tuck his erection into the waistband of his boxers.

Minato then inhaled and exhaled as quietly as he could, and moved so that he could walk around the large bed to leave the room.

"... Minato?" Kushina's voice stopped him just as he pulled the opened door wider.

"Yes?" He replied, turning his head to look at her.

".. I love you.."

"I love you too, dear.." Minato gave her a smile, and then ducked out of the room. He pulled the door shut behind him and sighed, shaking his head.

_I'm so stupid..._ He thought to himself. Of course Kushina wouldn't be ready quite yet... she was a tomboy more than half of her life, and how could he forget that? _Just have patience..._ He reminded himself as he inaudibly traversed the hallway to their bathroom, to take a cold shower like he said. Granted, he wouldn't be able to go back to sleep after that, but he figured a nap in the middle of the warm afternoon would be satisfying enough.

_I'll just have to... slowly bring her out of that shell... _He sighed and strode into the restroom, shoulders slumped slightly in disappointment. He mentally slapped himself, and nudged the bathroom door shut with his foot.

_Be patient... she'll open up eventually...

* * *

_

"Mikotooo! Mikoto, Mikoto, Mikoto, Mikoto!"

"What the..." Sae turned her entire body on the cushion she sat upon, staring curiously at the sliding door that would lead to the entrance of the home. Mikoto was leaning over to her side so that she could peer around her blond friend, a brow quirked.

"The nerve of her..! Forgetting about me." Sae sighed melodramatically, the back of a hand to her forehead to enunciate her tone, before getting up to answer the door, seeing as Itachi was in Mikoto's arms.

"... Your friend is too loud," Fugaku muttered, with his nose buried into the news print he was reading.

"Sorry.. We'll go into Itachi's room- it's about time for his nap anyway," Mikoto offered, ticking her infant's nose, who in returned gurgled softly. The mother sighed softly and got up to her feet, peering into the entry way of their home.

"Sae, tell her to hold off whatever she wants to tell us- we'll talk in Itachi's room." She called, before walking around the living room table to quietly carry Itachi down the hall.

"Alright!" Sae returned over her shoulder, before reaching out to slide open the front door. Surely enough, Kushina stood before her, hand against the side of the house to steady herself as she panted- Sae could only guess that she had run all the way here while calling Mikoto's name.

".. Oh, and Sae too..." Kushina added as she looked up slightly, only partially surprised that the blond florist was there. Sae only harrumphed and folded her arms, though she stepped aside to allow the redhead in. Kushina dipped her head in several appreciative nods, stumbling inside all while fanning herself. She scraped her sandals off and loped in after Sae, glimpsing over at Fugaku, who sat comfortably at the table, giving no acknowledging looks as he continued to read a column that had his attention.

"In here, in here," Mikoto's voice called, muffled from being in another room. The call prompted the two to hurry along and rejoin the older kunoichi, who was rocking her child gently back and forth. "Nice to see you, Kushina... here, go by the window and cool down for a bit." She offered, dropping her voice down to a hushed tone when she heard Itachi yawn.

Which Kushina gladly did. She leaned heavily against the wall, propping her elbow up on the sill so that she could get the most out of the timid breeze that rolled in.

"I can't believe you ran all the way over here.. during _summer_." Sae scoffed a bit as she closed the door behind her, though almost immediately she was in Kushina's face, giving her the most smug expression the redhead had ever seen. "_Buuuuut_," She started, and all Kushina could think was,

_Oh good grief._

"Sooo, how has your nights been?"

"Sae.." Mikoto warned, though her threatening tone wasn't quite as dangerous, since she was trying to coo Itachi into sleep.

"I... that's why I'm here," Kushina started, though she was immediately cut off by a giggle from Sae.

"Ohh, _already_?"

"I... huh? No, I mean, we did some stuff-" She stopped to allow Sae to tone down her giggling. "But I was scared and I... I stopped him because I don't know what to do, alright?" Kushina huffed out the rest of her sentence, and then turned her pouting face out the window. Her throat rumbled with an irritated growl, though she fell silent as she stared out while Sae and Mikoto exchanged silent looks.

It wasn't her fault she didn't know what to do...! She hung out with guys most of her life, and guys were discreet about their romances, quite frankly. And even if, in a rare moment, they actually _talked_ about their experiences, she was either shooed out of the room, or her ears were plugged and eyes covered. Of course she wouldn't know anything about sexual experiences...! It wasn't her fault, right?

Kushina sighed heavily and continued to stare out the window. There were a couple of Uchiha's walking by, granted that it was their clan grounds, so she gave a small dip of their heads when their eyes would occasionally meet, and they would give an acknowledging greeting; whether it was a slight wave of their hand, or a silent nod.

Then Kushina paused.

Well, she supposed she wasn't completely deprived of sexual knowledge; after all, it seemed as though her body came close to responding to Minato's touches... but why was something, so small in the back of her mind, resisting the desires...?

As she zoned back into reality, she found her gaze wandering subconsciously over to a clansman who was strolling casually, and felt her blood freeze.

Kushina stubbed several of her toes as she practically kicked the wall just to get away from the window, and clearly the rest of her body was caught off guard by her instincts, so she stumbled backwards onto the ground, just barely missing Sae. Her heart rate was soaring at a rather dangerous level, and immediately she felt her body begin to tremble.

A huge, _huge_ part of her hoped that the man hadn't seen her commotion and come over to investigate.

As though her prayers had been answered, she found that no Uchiha had poked his head through the window and question what was wrong, though instead, Sae entered her line of sight, making her jump back a little.

"Kushina? What's wrong?" There was a sense of urgency in Sae's voice, and also confusion. She followed Kushina's gaze out the window, but returned her focus back to the redhead when she found Mikoto approaching the opening to examine what had startled the kunoichi.

"I... I..." Was all Kushina could manage to stumble out of her mouth, so Sae only settled herself onto the floor next to her, wrapping an arm around Kushina's shoulders and bringing her close.

"Shhh... Calm down..." Sae hushed, her crystal-blue gaze flickering up to Mikoto.

_What's out there?_

_Just a couple of clansmen... _

_Odd... _Sae rotated her attention back over to Kushina when the redhead shuddered. "Breathe, Kushina, breathe... Through your nose, now.."

Kushina could only nod obediently, hugging herself to try and suppress the body spasms while she struggled to keep herself from hyperventilating.

_Stop thinking about it!_ She mentally screamed as the terrifying images unwillingly flashed through her mind; her hitched breathing, the alcoholic odor in his breath, his body crushing hers against the painful brick wall... his invading hands roaming her body...

_Minato...! _

Her savior's arms around her exposed shoulders, the relief that flooded her entire being...

Kushina, slowly but surely, calmed herself, breathing in through her nose like Sae instructed, although it took a while for her to steady her fluttering heart beats. It perhaps took her several minutes, but just thinking about how Minato had saved her was enough to quicken the process.

Soon, she found herself relaxing, though her hands still shook in a small side effect of her previous shock. She only rubbed her hands, as if they had a mind of their own and she was trying to soothe them, and then looked over at Sae when the blond spoke.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah... yeah..." Kushina murmured with a couple of nods. She inhaled and exhaled and breath that was slightly shaky- a clear sign that her body has yet to completely recover from the shock.

"... Want to talk about it..?"

"... I'm not sure if it's the same guy, but it looked a lot like him," Kushina added. ".. But a couple of years ago, he... tried to rape me."

Sae's arm tensed around Kushina, and Mikoto immediately leaned out the window to try and see who it was, squinting against the sunlight.

"Are you sure it was an Uchiha?" Mikoto asked as she tried to recognize the Uchiha's back from where she could see him walking away.

"He had that... those eyes, I can't remember what they're called, and he used them to keep me from running away... But he was drunk, but still..." Kushina mumbled, continuing to rub her hands. She shivered a bit and shook her head. _That's why I was scared with Minato... _

".. I'll talk to him and then the clan head about it..." Mikoto promised with a solemn nod, before withdrawing herself back into the room and pulling the curtain over the window. "How long ago was this?"

"... A few years-"

"_Years_?" Sae repeated with a disapproving growl, grabbing Kushina by the shoulders and forcing the redhead to look her straight in the eyes. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"Because I forgot!" Kushina retorted in her self defense- and it was the truth! "Because Minato rescued me before things got too far, and then... and then he confessed to me.." She mumbled the last part and adverted her gaze.

"... Awww.." Sae, and even Mikoto this time, sighed like a couple of Academy students swooning over some good looking ninja.

"Yeah, yeah!" Kushina mumbled, brushing Sae's hands off her shoulders, and then folded her arms as she continued to keep her gaze adverted. She could already picture what their expressions were like, so she definitely did not need to turn and confirm it.

"I'm glad to see that chivalry isn't dead," Mikoto chuckled, before moving over to the crib and placing her sleeping son inside of it, letting him rest. "You're in good hands.."

The Uchiha kunoichi turned, and her soft expression immediately became stern as she folded her arms. "But, that doesn't mean you should just neglect the fact that the Uchiha tried to rape you- you should have come to us sooner about that, Kushina..."

"Yeah..." Kushina sighed, slumping forward into a slouch with a light huff. It was then she realized that she didn't put on her hair clip, since she had bolted out of the house in a hurry to arrive at the Uchiha's household. So a long lock of her hair fell in front of her face, but Sae quickly reached out to tuck it behind an ear for her. Of course, it had started to slip out anyway, so Sae motioned for the kunoichi to look up.

"But, I guess it does explain some things.." Mikoto carried on. "Probably left a couple of psychological scars.. So that's probably why you were resisting more intimate moments with Minato..."

"... Yeah." Was all Kushina could say, knowing that there was more to be said.

"... You can't keep resisting forever, Kushina." Sae continued when Mikoto trailed off. "Because one day he'll just stop going after you, if you don't give him proper love back-"

"I do!" Kushina interrupted, finally meeting Sae's gaze. There was a mixture of hurt and anger at the assumption. "But... I just don't know how, okay? That's why I'm here..."

Sae chuckled a bit. "And that's why we're here," She said, placing a hand on Kushina's shoulder. "We're going to tell you a lot of stuff, but you can't get all embarrassed and run out on us, got it?"

"... Alright."

* * *

**Author(ess)'s Notes:  
Kiki: **I sure as hell hope you guys saw that note up there. :U Just remember it in the future, because I'm not through with the M-rated stuff quite yet, hurr. (Oh, and the more asterisks there are, the more mature the content is. There should be a maximum of three, with one being the lightest content.)

But anyways, it's looking like I'll be going through and practically writing a lemon, lmao. For those who wanted me to skip over the details- you can! Just.. skim. xD Plus the warning is going to be up there, so you won't be totally caught off guard when the more juicy stuff happens.

You guys really do deserve the next coming chapters. :'B For sticking through with me and my irregular schedule, and enduring nearly 40 chapters! Dx So, really, thank you guys for being so patient and sending in kind reviews.

Sorry, again, for the late updates.. But, man, really... you guys need to understand my priorities. I have a _huge_ project that's due in a couple of weeks, and my _graduation from highschool_ depends solely on if I even pass it or not. Hell, they embedded that project into half of our social studies and English grades, and right now I'm failing those two classes because of that project. (_Friggin piece of bull shit._)

So, I know it's selfish of me, but _please_ try not to get mad at me for the late updates. A couple of you readers need to learn to be more empathetic of the writers. :'T Just sending in a review saying UPDATE SOON or UPDATE IN -SO AND SO TIME- is just a huge demotivator for us sometimes. _Especially_ if life is really just not allowing us the leisure time to sit and type out what we want to... I mean, honestly, I _am_ trying to update as quickly as I can with my congested schedule... But so many things are preventing me from typing more than a paragraph before having to get back to work; school, senior project, algebra 2... and dare I mention a malware attack on my computer that prevented me from saving the huge part of the chapter that I wrote at the time... THAT is a demotivator, but I still took the type to retype all that was lost... and make it better..! For you guys!

So, please... I know I ask a lot of you much just to review (which I know, a lot of you seem to really hate doing, for some reason), but... just try to understand the reasons for my late updates.

Things _will_ get busier for me, but after February or so, things should slow down a bit..  
Thank you for understanding.


	40. Nothing But Love

****Chapter XXXX: Nothing But Love**

"It's been a while... How have things been going for the two of you?"

Minato turned his head slightly, just so that he could see past his yellow hair that framed his peripherals, before he smiled a bit, though the motion seemed somewhat forced. And it was all because of the oppressive, summer air. Even in the shade, the heat somehow managed to creep its way in. But, he made himself sit up a bit, wipe the thin film of sweat from his forehead, and look up at his teacher.

"It's been good.. We finally managed to get everything unpacked and settled... though it's hard to relax in this heat." Minato couldn't resist any longer and started to fan himself with the paper menu, then moved aside so that Jiraiya could sit on the bench beside him.

"I hear ya... It's going to be a wet winter this year." Jiraiya commented as he settled down, though he made sure there was enough space between them so that they wouldn't have to breathe eachother's body heat. The tall Sage was dressed lightly as well, ditching the thick Jounin vest and long sleeved shirt for one with a thinner material that only went down to his elbows. He, like Minato, also didn't bother to wear the metal-plated headband.

"Snow sounds nice right now..." Minato murmured, though he sounded despondent. As he should be; with the current heat, there was no way there would be snow in the next few months. The very thought was enough to make him groan and sink into the bench slightly, extending his legs and propping his heels into the ground so that he wouldn't slide off completely.

The blond righted himself as a waitress came and took their orders, murmuring the drink he was eying on the menu. The waitress seemed to have taken pity on him since she didn't take back the menu, so Minato continued to fan himself tiredly. The young woman returned a couple of minutes later, holding out their iced drinks for them before scuttling back inside the tea shop.

"Glad I'm not out there running around," Jiraiya muttered, leaning back against the wooden wall of the shop. Even under a tile awning, the shade outside was still too warm for comfort. The two could only imagine what it would be like to be fighting over in the country... or, even worse, the western side of the country where the forest gradually turned into the oppressive desert of the Suna's country...

"Suna ninja are crazy." Minato commented after taking a sip of his drink. It took a lot of willpower to keep himself from draining the contents, so he tried to savor the cooling salvation the best he could. Admittedly, while fanning himself and sipping iced tea, the weather wasn't so bad- almost bearable in this state. But he knew it would only be a matter of time until he finished his beverage.

"Mhm..." Jiraiya was busy trying to keep his own temperature down, taking a large gulp of his drink and swishing it around in his mouth. He smacked his lips a bit once he swallowed, and then turned his head to his former student. "So how far did you get with Kushina?"

Minato would have choked on his drink, but that would have meant he was surprised at the question. After years of dragging the man away from the hot springs and listening to him _vividly_ describe the contours of the women he had a drink with, Minato knew that the question was coming- only more so now that he had moved in with her.

"Second base." The blond tried to sound casual and then sipped his drink again. Though no response came like he had predicted, so he turned his head and found Jiraiya staring at him with the expression Minato recognized along the lines of, 'Are you kidding.'

The white haired Jounin quickly drained the rest of his drink in a single gulp- probably something he got from alcoholic nights -and placed it on the bench beside him, leaving a couple of yen to pay for both of their drinks.

"Get up. Walk with me, talk with me, grasshopper."

_Oh great_.. Minato sighed and took a couple of big gulps to clean out his beverage, leaving it on the bench besides Jiraiya's glass and slipping the paper menu under the coin yens. Thankfully Jiraiya was waiting for him, so he wouldn't have to jog to catch up or anything.

They walked in silence, which was a tad concerning for the blond; normally Jiraiya would just dive straight into a conversation or, what Minato thought in this case, a lecture. So he only followed Jiraiya like he was just a genin again, following him into the shadows to avoid walking directly in the oppresive sunlight.

Slowly but surely Minato was starting to recognize the area they were walking towards, and Jiraiya slowed his pace so that he was walking along side his former student.

"Lead the way."

He didn't have to be told twice.

Minato kept his sigh to himself and continued walking down the path. Sure, they could have just shunshin'd to his house, but with the air thick with uncomfortable moisture and heat... it was somewhat repulsive, like walking in the heat wearing black clothing or something. Hiraishin was also an option, but... even the Yellow Flash was allowed to have a lazy day, right? Besides, he wanted to just get away from the ninja life, at least for a little bit; and using Hiraishin would only remind him of how heavily the war seemed to depend on him sometimes... So, walking it was.

There was a heavy silence, not nearly as heavy as the heat, but it was enough to make Minato have to glimpse up at the tall man every so often. Jiraiya only kept a straight face, though he'd occasionally frown a bit at his own thoughts. Minato would only sigh and swing his head back around to the front.

_Let's get this over with.._ He thought once his home was in sight. The blond didn't bother to hold his head high since he knew he was going to get a lecture of sorts, and just loped towards the front door, reaching out and grasping the warm handle. It turned only slightly before stopping, telling him that it was locked, so he quickly fished the key from his pocket and inserted it into the small slit to unlock it.

Jiraiya followed him inside, closing the door quietly behind him while the blond moved to open the windows and let some air circulate.

"Sit."

"Yeah." Minato's shoulders slumped, just slightly, at the order, but turned around and trailed over to the couch and settled down. Almost immediately, Jiraiya was on him like a hungry bird of prey who hadn't eaten for days.

"What. The. Hell. Really, 'Nato? Just... Okay, tell me how long you two have been together."

"... Some three years or so-"

"Three years or so." Jiraiya repeated without letting the blond finish, folding his arms behind his back and continuing to pace to and fro in front of the seated Jounin.

"But the war-"

"Uh-uh, don't give me that!" Jiraiya interrupted once more, swinging his torso around so that he could point accusingly, making Minato lean back as far as he could from where he was seated. "Look at the leisure time you've had now! I bet you had a bunch of times like these during those three plus years!"

"W-well, yes, but-"

"But you _only just_ got. to. second. base." With each enunciation, Jiraiya took a step towards the seated blond, folding his arms once he stopped and frowning in disappointment. "Have you no guts at all?"

"Oh don't say that to me, sensei." Minato found himself irritated at that last remark. "I'm a weapon in this war used to annihilate thousands of lives..."

"Killing someone and getting further in your relationship are two completely different things!" Jiraiya pinched the bridge of his nose. Just how could Minato compare those two things together...? This was going to take a lot of lecturing... So the tall sage sat down on the coffee table in front of the couch, leaning forward so that he could rest his forearms on his knees.

"Look, kid-" Minato knew it was serious if Jiraiya was calling him a kid again. "-You remember the time you spent at my place? I didn't leave those pornographic magazines lying around for nothing."

"Wh.. wha.." Minato was sputtering at how bluntly the man told him this.. and with a straight face, no less! Just at the word, Minato was stuttering and turning red. But the latter was mostly because he remembered actually going through a couple of those magazines while Jiraiya was in the battlefield... Of course he denied it but, for some reason, Jiraiya would notice if it was even a centimeter out of place. Somehow.

"I know you're not like most other guys, Minato, but come on... Are you _really_ satisfied with only _just_ getting to second base _now_?"

"Of course not!" Minato protested. "But I don't want to force her or anything, you know...!"

"You're too polite, boy..." Jiraiya was pinching the bridge of his nose again, eyes closed so that he could take a momentary break from the excuses. His shoulders slumped slightly, but the man took a deep breath and straightened himself, looking Minato square in the eyes. "If she really loved you, then she'd let you do it."

"..." The last sentence silenced the blond into a small frown. For some reason, that hurt. _A lot._ ... Oh, wait, that's right. It was probably because, about a month or so back, that whole situation with the Iwa ninja...

Anger pricked at Minato's heart, and he found himself narrowing his eyes. But not at the memory of the man who had tricked Kushina.

The blond lifted his narrowed gaze to eye Jiraiya.

"There's more to love than getting into each other's pants."

The boldness of the statement, the audacity of it all, was enough to make Jiraiya lean back a bit and raise both of his brows. There was a fairly long silence between them, before Jiraiya finally sighed and scratched his head. He couldn't deny what the blond said, but... why couldn't the kid get it through his thick skull...? He sighed a second time and opened his mouth to respond, but stopped when he looked up and caught the look on Minato's face; stunned, wide-eyed with a bit of a red tint to his cheeks..

Jiraiya turned around to look over his shoulder, but Minato's fist closing around the sleeve of his thin shirt snapped his head back around, and, so suddenly, the scenery was bright and forced the white haired Sage to close his eyes. As soon as he felt the annoying heat of the air around them, Jiraiya knew that Minato transported them outside. Once his black eyes readjusted to the harsh lighting, he looked down at the blond, who was frowning at him with cheeks tinted red, which made Jiraiya quirk a brow.

"Kushina got out of the shower." Was all the blond had to say.

"Oh." Jiraiya gave a nonchalant shrug. Not that he was curious about what the redhead looked like beneath her semi-baggy clothing.

"But, anyway... Yeah, I suppose you're right. About earlier." The Sage reached out and ruffled his former student's bright yellow hair, and it was then he realized how tall Minato had gotten. Of course, the blond was still a full head shorter than him, but Jiraiya was just unnaturally tall. "But, trust me. It'll happen eventually, but I'm letting you know now that it's been far too long." Jiraiya gave a bit of a shrug and turned around.

Minato could see his shoulders slump, as if Jiraiya was realizing that he'd have to walk back in the heat.

"I don't need to give you a lecture, though, right? 'Bout babies and all?"

"Sensei-" Jiraiya interrupted the blond as soon as he caught the flustered tone.

"Nah, I think you know by now. I'm sure you went through some of those books of mines." Jiraiya snorted and waved his hand in a 'don't bother answering that' motion, before looking over his shoulder. "Anyway, get home- she's probably wondering where you vanished to."

* * *

She had been soaking in the tub for quite some time, resting in lukewarm water that was slowly turning cold, even with the air inside the house warm from the summer. It wasn't that she was dirty or anything like that, she simply felt the need to relax in some water, and she didn't feel like traveling all the way to the outskirts of the village where the streams would be, and saying no to the hot springs was a given. The kunoichi repositioned her legs and held her breath as she slid down and submersed herself for several seconds, before surfacing again, picking at the strands of her red hair that clung to her cheeks and neck. Kushina slipped her legs back in the water and leaned back against the tub, exhaling a soft sigh.

And, like all the other times she actually took the time to soak in a tub full of water, she quietly thought to herself. Normally, she would have enjoyed these thoroughly; it was some alone, self-searching time that she needed every once in a while, but her conversations with Mikoto and Sae were leaking into her current thoughts.

Heat flared from her neck and crawled its way up onto her cheeks, so she quickly sunk herself low enough to submerge half of her face into the water, as if doing so would help her cool down. Of course it didn't, but it was worth a try, seeing that the water was at a refreshingly cool temperature.

Just... god. Those two knew _a lot_. Especially Mikoto, but that was a given, since the Uchiha kunoichi already has a child and to have a child- yeah... Still yet, she wondered how Sae even knew about... what they had told her.

_"Well, I'm not a ninja like you guys, so I have a lot of free times. Romance novels, Kushina-chan, romance novels." _Was all that Sae had told her. Did those things really go that explicit? Maybe it would be less awkward if she picked one up herself and read it... but then again, she'd probably have keep herself from snapping the book shut and leaving it in the corner to collect dust or something.

Kushina sighed, but forgot she was half submerged in water, so she sputtered a bit when she accidentally inhaled a couple droplets of water, quickly sitting up and coughing. She wiped her nose, grimacing at the burning sensation that accompanied after water went up her nostrils. Ick.

She simply sat in the tub for several seconds, watching as the ripples she created from her jerking movements slowly vanished, smoothing out into a clear surface that was occasionally broken by a drop of water that dripped from her bangs.

_"You're so awkward and cute, Kushina-chan," _She could clearly hear Sae's voice in her head. It was so clear, in fact, that Kushina actually covered her exposed chest and looked around the bathroom for a couple of seconds. _"But you also have a beautiful figure! I bet you could be really sexy if you tried." _

_"What, sexy?" _Kushina had sputtered in response that day.

_"Yes! I mean, look at your hair! It's long and gorgeous! And it's _red_! Red is considered a sexy color."_

_"I, uh... okay. That's the first I've heard of it..."_

_"Oh come on, Kushina-chan! Try and work with us here! Have you seen some of the young women in the village? I bet you could be a real vixen compared to them!"_

_"V-vixen?"_

_"... Okay, maybe not a _vixen_-vixen, but real sexy like a fox, or... ohhh, you know what I mean!" _

How the heck was Kushina supposed to act sexy? ... Oh wait, she had asked that too.

_".. That's actually a difficult question to answer, because... Well, we don't know what Minato-kun finds sexy, you know? That's gonna be something you're gonna have to find out yourself.."_

_"... How?"_

_"Experiment a little! Do something sexy for a change! Step out of your comfort zone."_

_"I don't have any ideas and you know that."_

_"Umm... Oh! You cook for him, right? Maybe he's into that apron thing-"_

_"What apron thing?"_

_"... Oh dear, you honestly don't know. It's like this kink where the girl wears _only_ an apron when they cook for their lover-"_

_"_Only_ an apron?"_

_"Sae-chan, that's a bit too... fast for Kushina-chan... Maybe _undergarments_ and an apron would be fine for her..."_

_"Ooh, yeah, good idea, Mikoto-chan!" _

Kushina covered her face with both of her hands, finding that her cheeks were incredibly hot from her blushing. Okay, so maybe she _could_ try out that apron thing... It was definitely hot enough- temperature wise -to strip down to her panties and bra.. especially with the stove on. She sank into the tub once more to submerge her face, and then quickly surfaced, blindly groping to pull the plug and drain the cooling water.

As Kushina was standing to climb out of the tub, she could hear the front door to the house being opened and then closed.

_Oh, he's home. _Kushina was surprised to hear the disappointment in her thoughts, and she stood quietly, with the water slowly receding down to her ankles, while she tried to figure out why. Heat flared from her neck and up to her cheeks when she realized that, yes, she was actually going to go and try out that apron kink... and that she wanted it to be a surprise, but if he was already home, then...

And then she heard a second voice echoing softly, a much deeper, baritone voice.

_A visitor?_ She thought with a frown, and then quietly got out of the emptied tub, being sure not to slip and injure herself. She pulled a clean towel off the metal rack and quickly covered herself, wrapping it around her chest and tucking the corner of it near her underarm so that it wouldn't fall.

No biggy... she'd just wait until the visitor left... Because, really, walking to the bedroom meant walking past the living room, which meant the person would probably see her in only a towel.. So, she figured she could wait for a bit. Brushing her hair would take a long time, anyway.

_A really long time._ Kushina thought as soon as her brush encountered the first set of knots. So she grabbed a fist full of her hair above the knots and started working on detangling the red threads, all while keeping a keen ear turned to the muffled voices she could hear from the other room.

As she went through the knots, a part of her wondered why she didn't cut it short. If she stopped to blindly feel for the damp edges, it went roughly down to the middle of her back- maybe even past it. If it was short like how it used to be, then it would be much more manageable- she probably wouldn't even have to brush it! But something was compelling her to refrain from grabbing a pair of scissors and just chopping it off without a care in the world. ... Oh, right. Sae and Mikoto said something about Minato liking long hair, didn't they?

Her thoughts were rudely interrupted when she encountered a nasty set of knots that nearly made her yank her hair out by the roots, and she grimaced then set straight to work on untangling it.

After several minutes of battling with knots and tangles, Kushina finally brushed through her hair, satisfied when she didn't run into any disturbances. And, by then, there was some silence that made her assume that the guest had left, so Kushina looked at herself in the mirror with satisfaction and placed her brush away. She adjusted the towel that was around her chest, and quietly pulled the door open, trailing down the hall. By instinct she turned her head to peer into the living room as she passed it, and immediately froze when she found that, _no_, she was wrong and that the other person was still there. Their back was turned to her, but she could recognize the large stature and the spikey white hair... but beyond the man, Minato immediately caught her widened gaze, and, before Kushina could duck behind the wall, the teacher and student vanished.

_Huh?_ Oh, right. His nickname was the Yellow Flash, how could she forget that? She was there when he received that moniker, too...

Well, he would be back soon, unless he decided to take the conversation else where.. Though that made Kushina frown slightly, but she tried to brush it off with a sigh, and quietly crossed the hall and entered the shared bedroom. She looked back to find that she had trailed a couple spots of water, but she brushed that aside as well- she could clean it later, or, no! Better yet, the ridiculous heat could dry it up in no time.

The thought made her snort, and she readjusted the fluffy white towel around her, reaching out with one hand for the handle on her dresser.

"Kushina?"

That was fast. Again, why was she so surprised about that, anyway? She looked up after hearing some footsteps to find Minato standing in the entrance of the room, his hand on the doorframe as his eyes just took in her figure..

With the towel around her tightly, her figure was just so... tempting. The inward curve her waist line, her hips, her partially exposed breasts, and her legs...! Whatever blood was previously in his cheeks basically took a U-turn down into his mindless cock, so he swallowed the lump in his throat and forced himself to look her in the eye.

Kushina had caught the way his eyes were roaming her body almost hungrily, and it took her a few seconds to process that simple fact. Some small, small voice in the back of her head left her momentarily confused when it whispered, _he's at your mercy_.

Was he? Kushina slowly straightened herself- since she was bent over slightly from reaching for her drawer -and found that Minato was just doing his best to not ogle her figure, though she caught him failing a bit as his gaze rolled down momentarily before snapping back up to her eyes. The fact that he was pretty much silenced, the words unable to form on his tongue, only tipped her off further.

Weird... It almost gave her a sense of... power. That _she_, commoner from a destroyed ninja village, could have one of the ninja world's strongest men, the _Yellow Flash_, the one who could wipe out hundreds of ninjas in a heartbeat, at her mercy.

But Kushina found it a little more weird that she actually kinda enjoyed this feeling... Huh. Was that was Sae meant by being... ah, what was it, a vixen or something? Well, she felt rather fox like as she took a couple of fluid steps towards him, and even raised her brows a bit- unintentionally conjuring an innocent expression -as Minato took half a step back. The blond was biting his lip a bit, and it was clear he was debating on whether or not he should turn around and let her get dressed, or stay since she had approached him.

The redhead was now inches within the blond, her left hand raised so that she could have a proper hold on her towel, while the other was lifted, fingers curled excluding the index finger, which was drawing swirls into his chest. Beneath her fingertip she could feel his heart beating, fast.

Huh. Was this all it took to be 'sexy'? It was surprisingly easy. Though, the confidence boost from that power feeling earlier probably had something to do with it.

"What were you guys talking about?" She asked innocently, her brown-red eyes following her fingertip before looking up at Minato. The Jounin's mouth was opening and closing slightly as he tried to make coherent words, before he finally managed to stammer something out.

"U-uh, we were just catching up, really. It... it's been a while since we... saw... each other..." Minato's words were starting to trail off as Kushina's index finger started tracing the lines of his abs, and it took a bit of willpower to keep the girl from smirking. She was really enjoying this...

"Really?"

"... Yeah..." Minato breathed, though he took a hold of Kushina's wrist to stop her, pursing his lips as he fought an internal battle. Just... god damn. Why did Kushina have to go and act so... so damn _hot_ after he _just_ made a point to his teacher? He was really, _really_ tempted to just completely go against everything he was arguing for and just... gah!

Fuck it.

The blond released Kushina's wrist so that he could cup her cheeks with both hands, angling her head and immediately crushed his lips against hers, earning a startled sound from the kunoichi.

"M.. Mina..a.." The kunoichi wasn't given a chance to continue as Minato forced her mouth open with his tongue, hungrily wrestling with hers. Whatever words she tried to form were now moans, which only put him further on edge. He knew he had to resist just completely having his way with her, but... it was a tough battle. He could kill out of cold blood and eradicate enemies within seconds, but against this internal battle for self control, he was losing.

Minato pulled away from the fervent liplock to plant kisses on her neck, and then collarbone.. he even dared to nibble on it a little, and he could feel Kushina flinch slightly beneath his teeth. Her hands were gripping at his shirt, but they made no motion to push him away.

So while he was leaning over, he quickly scooped the kunoichi off the ground, bridal style, ignoring the surprised squeak she gave. He even gave a small smirk when she met his gaze, before she flusteredly looked down to keep the towel wrapped around her.

"What happened to that attitude earlier, hmm?" He even asked when a thick line of blush appeared along her cheeks, making his smirk widen further. As her eyes widened and she looked away, Minato gave a throaty chuckle and carried her over to the bed, then received a response from Kushina,

"W, well what about you? You were the one stammering earlier! What happened to that?" Kushina folded her arms across her chest after she fixed the towel, crossing her legs as she sat on the edge of the bed and looked away, huffing a bit. Minato quirked a brow slightly at her question. Ah... clever girl.

"Because I was trying to hold myself back." Minato placed his hands on the bed and brought himself close, staring Kushina in the eye. By how she swallowed a bit and started to advert her gaze, the intensity of his own was too much for her. "You're mean, tempting me like that." He chuckled a bit, before quickly leaning forward to press his lips to hers.

Her hands snaked around his neck and even pulled him down as the kunoichi laid on the bed. Minato proped his arms so that he was just hovering above her, pulling away from the kisses to look down at the single material that separated him from her exposed body. He felt a tad hesitant again, but his body moved on its own and slowly he hooked a finger over the edge of the towel, his gaze trailing back up to her eyes to see if she would say no... However, her eyes were glazed slightly and she gave the smallest, smallest dips of her head, giving no physical signs of protest.

He slowly unwrapped the towel from around the kunoichi, and his breath caught in his throat. His blue eyes took in all the details of her body; the perfect curves of her breasts, the way her waist dipped in to give her an hourglass look.. Soon, she began to squirm beneath him, crossing a leg over the other and moving arms to cover her chest with her hands, but Minato quickly caught her wrists before she could.

"No." The blond breathed, leaning down to bring his face close. "You're beautiful... Don't be shy..."

Kushina gave him an unsure look, lips half pursed as she tried to pull her arms out of Minato's grasp with no success. She finally gave up and relaxed in his grip, so Minato slowly released her wrists, fighting himself for self control as he reached out to grab at her breasts, slowly tracing the soft curves. He bit his lower lip for a few moments, and then dipped his head down to tease her nipple with his tongue, ignoring the light flinch the kunoichi gave at his sudden move.

"Ah-!"

_God_, if she made sounds just from simple moves like that, he could imagine what would come from her mouth if he...

"M-Minato..." He could feel his stomach drop at the way she said his name... It made him exhale a shaky breath and he lifted his head to look at her, then immediately he got his face cupped by her and pulled into another fervent kiss. As their tongues wrestled, he continued to massage her breasts, enticing a soft moan when he'd run his thumbs over the curing nubs.

The blond exhaled a soft, curt breath of his own when Kushina squirmed beneath him, her thigh brushing against his throbbing member. His breath was slowly becoming husky, and he eventually pulled away to bite his lip as he tried to keep himself from crumbling under the weight of his impulses.

"Kushina..." He groaned under his breath. Just... _fuck_. All he had to do was pull down his pants, and... The blond flinched a bit when she timidly reached down and brushed her fingers over the bulge in his pants, and he just about nearly bit through his lower lip. Normally her gentle fingers probably would have been hard to feel through the two layers of clothes, but... just the smallest touch was enough to short circuit his nerves.

His legs nearly gave out beneath him, so he planted his knees on the bed to steady himself, hunched forward as he kept himself upright with his hands as well. Kushina was still flat on her back, still exposed, and her eyes adverted downwards to focus on rubbing him.

Her fingertips were growing sore from caressing through the textured material, though she hesitated as she pulled away, almost looking up at the blond when he gave a disappointed grunt. Gingerly, she hooked her fingers over the edge of his tight pants, feeling him shudder just slightly when the back of her knuckles brushed against his bare skin. Kushina brought down her other hand to quietly undo the button and pull down the zipper. She could feel her face bloom red and her heart beat quickly in embarrassment at the bulge that was quite prominent now that his pants were pulled down slightly to expose his boxers. Her chest tightened slightly, and her fingers trembled. Slowly, she pulled his boxers away from his erection, which bobbed up now that there was no clothing keeping it pinned down.

She swallowed the lump in her throat, forcing herself to steady her heartbeat by breathing through her nose, and then gingerly reached out to grab at his shaft. _Warm... _Her gaze shyly trailed away from his manhood and up to his eyes, though he looked... distracted. His brows were knotted and he was clenching his jawline tightly, trying hard to keep his body from shuddering in pleasure at her touch.

Oh... oh god... Minato tried to keep his breathing silent, but they came out in short pants that were far from inaudible. He could feel his stomach knotting and... oh god. He breathed her name as soon as she started moving her closed hand around his erection in a pumping motion, making it difficult to keep himself from groaning softly.

The blond quickly grabbed Kushina's shoulders, the grip making her flinch and also stopping her hand.

"W..ait..." Minato breathed. Slowly he removed his hands from her bare shoulders and swung to his left to sit down beside her, catching his breath as he propped himself upright with his forearms. He... he needed a breather. He needed to keep himself under control...

He looked down when Kushina curled up next to him, reaching an arm over his stomach in a sort of half hug.

"I'm sorry..."

"No, no..!" Minato quickly responded, adjusting himself so that he could cup her cheek, carefully prompting her to look up at him. He stopped when they made eye contact, and for a brief second he found himself breathless, unable to respond... He swallowed a couple of times to moisten his throat, and forced the words out. "It felt good.. _Really_ good." Understatement.

".. Are you sure..?"

"Yeah..!" Minato breathed, probably too quickly. Kushina looked down and then away, and against his palm, he could feel her face heating up as her gaze trailed down to his... Minato hurriedly pulled her another another kiss.

While their tongues were dancing, the blond could feel the kunoichi's arm shift from around his waist, her fingertips tracing the ridges of his abs and leaving small trails of fire as they slowly made their way downwards... His breathing hitched when they wrapped around his shaft, but he only pressed his lips against hers harder, desperate to find some sort of distraction that would just keep him from rolling over and, and...

He couldn't stop the deep moan from escaping him as he pulled away from the fervent kisses. Half-lidded eyes stared down at her, and hers met his briefly before bashfully looking away as she continued to focus on pleasuring him. Minato stifled another gasp when she timidly ran her thumb over the head, swallowing back the sounds that were forming against his will. The blond snaked an arm beneath Kushina, hastily pulling her closer before dipping his head. His mouth busied itself with her nipple once more, running his tongue over it and even daring to nibble on it, his arm keeping her close when she tried to flinch away. Her pumping had stopped at the move, but a soft, disappointed sound from Minato prompted her to keep going.

God, her hands felt soft... It only made his muscles tense further, his hands tremble a bit, and his breath shorter. He just wanted to go further... His other hand even started roaming her body, massaging her other breast and drawing forth another moan from her lips, before his hand made its way down to trace the inward dip of her waist, then ran his fingers over her smooth hip bone... Minato's breathing hitched and he even clamped his teeth together. His chest felt tight, and his stomach felt like it was doing flips... He forced himself to exhale after a few seconds of holding his breath, panting out her name before lifting his head again to kiss her. His breath was hot as his tongue toyed with hers, hastily sucking on it for a couple of seconds while his hand traveled down to her thigh.

Soft... soft...

And oh god, her hand...! Minato wasn't even sure if it was just the new feelings or if Kushina was just _that_ good... Whichever it was, the blond felt as though he was close to going over the edge...

His hand started to massage her soft thigh, making her own breathing quicken and mend with his. _Fuck_, he was going to come soon...

Kushina's heart was ramming painfully against her ribcage, and her forearm was starting to grow tense and sore from her constant pumping. She was tempted to stop a number of times, but... just, seeing him like this, and hearing his moans... It was enough to keep going, to see how much more sounds he could make. Hearing his fervent voice whisper her name, and hers only, was so... _hot. _Even when she did stop for a brief second to let her arm rest, he'd give a disappointed sound... He was completely at her mercy. Hers, and hers only...

Though when his hand started travelling towards her inner thigh, she used her free hand to push at his chest, pulling away from the tongue wrestle to pant, shaking her head. No, no... She... she wasn't ready for that. It was hard enough focusing on him when he toyed with her nipples like that...

"Don't... stop.." Minato breathed, and his arm that was around her back tensed, preventing her from moving back. She looked up at his half-lidded eyes and found them begging, desperate... _Please..._ Kushina swallowed a small lump in her throat, before nodding silently and closing the gap between their mouths.

His hand had moved away from her thigh and back up to her hip, slowly increasing his grip on it the more she moved her hand, up and down, up and down...

"Aah... aah...!" Kushina gave soft pants, refraining from protesting as Minato pulled away from the kissing to angle his head back. His strong arms pulled her closer, and she could feel his sculpted chest heaving against hers as he panted heavily. She squeezed an eye shut when his nails dug into her back slightly, but forced herself to keep pleasuring him, up and down, up and down...

The blond flinched and then shuddered, a short cry escaping him. Kushina couldn't see with Minato holding her, but she could feel warm liquid cover her fingers and the back of her hand, dripping down. His member was throbbing, and she slowly, timidly released it after a few seconds. Minato's grip on her lessened, and eventually he slumped back onto the bed, chest and stomach rising and falling as he caught his breath. Kushina sat up, crossing her legs slightly when she trailed her gaze downwards..

Blushing scarlet, she used her other hand- the one that wasn't covered in his come -and groped for the bath towel she had earlier, wiping away the white substance from her hand. She looked back over at Minato, finding that quite a bit of his release had splattered onto his partially exposed stomach and on his shirt... The kunoichi looked at him, though he was still trying to regain his breath, his eyes barely open and staring dazedly at the ceiling, so she carefully wiped away what she could with her bath towel, frowning when she found that it only smeared his shirt.

".. M.. Minato-"

"I'm... I'm sorry..." Minato only panted out before she could finish, turning his head so that he could look at her. He looked... exhausted. Like he could fall asleep any second. Kushina shook her head and massaged her tired forearm... there was an irritating pain that throbbed in her muscles, but... seeing Minato begging her to carry on, hearing him moan and seeing him completely drained like that was worth it.

So Kushina quietly pardoned herself, moving to the edge of the bed and getting up, using the towel to wipe away a droplet that had managed to get on her thigh. She was about to trail over to the dresser to retrieve her clothes, though Minato's whispered call made her turn around... She simply covered her breasts with one arm, suddenly feeling a little too exposed, as she turned only her head to look over her shoulder.

"D.. don't you want to...?"

"..." It took a few seconds for Kushina to figure out what he was saying, and she only gave him a small, wary smile, and a shake of her head. "I'm fine... maybe another day... You should sleep- you're gonna pass out in a few seconds."

Minato only stared at her tiredly through lidded eyes, quietly debating with himself before he decided that he agreed on what she said. He closed his eyes and blindly reached down to pull up his boxers and zip up his pants, his limbs feeling heavy with exhaustion. Even his senses were starting to dull; the sound of the dresser being pulled open sounded muffled to him, like he was listening through a glass wall. Sleep... sleep sounded good... The blond forced his body to push itself more towards the middle of the bed, before he rolled onto his side. Tiredly, his hand reached up for one of the pillows, grabbing one of them by the edge of the cover and pulling it down under his head, nuzzling the soft thing before exhaling a content breath.

Tired... tired...

As sleep started to set in, his mind allowed one more coherent thought.

From here on out, resisting her would be hard.

* * *

**Author(ess)'s Notes:  
Kiki: **This is very late, I know, but I warned you guys ahead of time that February would be a very, very hectic month for me. So, I would like to start by thanking you guys for being so lovingly patient and supportive! ;o; Really, I do appreciate it!

And also, another reason for this being completely late is that a really, really nasty malware attacked my computer, forcing me to send it to a computer repair shop and go computerless without two weeks... Torturous, especially since I had a huge writing muse a couple of days after my laptop broke down. ;_; Wryyyyy.

Holy crap, I reached the 40th chapter... Dear lord. xD' And you guys also hit the 400th review marker! ;o; Omg, 400 reviews. That's like... 10 reviews per chapter on average. I love you guys. Thanks again for being so supportive and reviewing, even though that can be the most groan-inducing thing in the world. Really, all of your meaningful words keep me going, and I appreciate every single one of you. n.n

I would also like to remind you guys, seeing that it's been more than a month since the last update, about the asterisks at the top. Two out of three asterisks is well... in this chapter, so three should be blatantly obvious. xD' So don't whine about not being warned, hehe...

So what did you guys think? Yes, no? More practice? Good enough? Give me your honest feedback, guys! -heart- I'm always looking for ways to improve, so constructive criticism is always welcomed, I assure you! n.n

But, yes.. Things have slowed down a bit with the project out of the way. (Which I passed, LIKE A BOSS, by the way! Thank you guys for your support and understanding! -hearts-) So hopefully I'll be able to update more frequently. c: Hopefully. I'm running out of little scenes, you know? xD So if you guys have any fluffy scenario suggestions, just feel free to leave one in a review! Who knows, maybe your scene will pop up. xP


	41. Letter

Dear readers,

I regret to inform you all that I will no longer be writing out _Yours and Mine_.  
I have many reasons as to this very difficult decision.

1. This is the first and primary reason;  
Minato and Kushina's true past, as well as the decline of interest in the Naruto series itself.  
This fanfiction is a sort of... head-canon, if you will.  
I wrote it out on a whim years ago, because we had absolutely no idea how Minato and Kushina met.  
I wanted to fill the gap that all of us wished to fill- to put out our own theories and guesses to their past.  
But the more I look back... The more I grow to dislike it. The OC's, the "weaboo" dialogue and plot...

Not to mention that Minato and Kushina's real past was revealed.  
Thus creating canon scenes that I needed to weave in.  
And many more that I just couldn't squeeze into the fanfiction.

The second reason is also the most hurtful.  
2. All the hate, the bitching, and the demands.  
Pardon my language.  
But a lot of you have been sending hurtful words to me over PM during the last couple of months.  
A lot have been begging me to continue, calling me hurtful things and just being rude over all.

I'm a very sensitive soul, to be honest. A lot of your words actually hurt me, and only made me shy further away from writing...  
Another good chunk of my shying is the demand for smut.  
I'm a little uncomfortable writing it, and I was planning on sort of skipping it, just so that I could continue the fic, but...  
So much of you demanded it and it made me wonder.  
I'm sure a lot of you were in it just for the porn.  
I've been getting questions like,  
"Why haven't they fucked yet?"  
and suggestions like,  
"they should do it during a mission in the forest, hehehe"

I'm sorry. But my... head-canon of Minato and Kushina is that of a awkwardly-adorable relationship that blooms into a beautiful one.  
Not one that is completely full of lust and sex.

The third reason for my leave.  
3. Growing up.  
I've graduated.  
I've grown up. I'm no longer watching/reading Naruto as avidly as I used to.  
(... Or watching anime as avidly at all, really.)

I've transitioned from writing about characters in an anime to writing about characters of my own creation.  
And let me tell you, I've grown to love and adore my characters like no other. They're what keeps me sane during these hard times in the economy...  
Don't get me wrong.  
Minato and Kushina will forever be my favorite couple from Naruto.  
They'll forever be in my hearts.  
But...  
I just grew up.

A lot of you probably saw this coming by now.  
I would have written this sooner, announced it earlier, but...  
All the potential bashing scared me, really.  
But I have to do it eventually, right?  
Otherwise you guys will just be left hanging.  
Otherwise you guys will just continue sending me hurtful words to try and "encourage me to write."

To those who were kind to me over the times this fanfiction was written.  
I sincerely thank you.  
Kind words were the one who helped me through the harder times when this fanfiction was actively productive.  
Your open-minds to the mistakes that were caused by the canon designs and past were the things that had kept me going.

Thank you all.

Thank you for walking with me on my head-canon of Minato and Kushina's past.  
Thank you for making this fanfiction way more successful than it really should have ever been.

This fanfiction will not be deleted.  
It will be left behind for those who wish to re-read it.  
It will be left behind for those who wish to continue it with their own interpretation of the ending.  
(And if anyone does this, I only request that they come forward and tell me, and credit me if anything is borrowed from my head-canon fanfiction.)  
... Who am I kidding, hahaha.  
But yes, yes. This fanfiction will be left behind.  
I won't deny that there are some parts of this fic that I've loved; Some parts that properly captured how beautiful I've found Minato and Kushina's relationship to be.  
It would be a shame to erase those forever.

So...  
This is farewell, my dear readers.  
I thank you all once again for any kind and encouraging words you have given me.  
But it's time I've closed this story.

Life, sadly, beckons me.

-Sincerely,  
_Spiritual Wolf_,  
AKA,  
_Kiki_.


End file.
